Withering Ice
by Take-2-Pay-4-1
Summary: A SEQUEL TO ARTEMIS FOWL AND THE GAMES OF HUNGER! The 80th Hunger Games are over and while Artemis Fowl's trip in the future might not have caused too many paradoxes, the consequences of Silyah Natho's actions might have changed some parts of the past. With new faces in District 3, a nearing Victory Tour and the People's secret in the balance, will a new victor's sanity hold up?
1. Prologue

_«Searching for file: Withering_Ice…»_

_«Requested file found. Opening File...»_

_«Greetings, I am D.E.X.T.E.R, before you can proceed with reading this top secret manuscript I have to inform you that the authors do not claim the copyrights of Artemis Fowl (Eoin Colfer) and The Hunger Games/Catching Fire (Suzanne Collins)...»_

_«Next, I need to notify you that the timeline for the events in this fictional story is set after "Artemis Fowl and the Lost Colony" and "The Hunger Games," as well as after "Artemis Fowl and the Games of Hunger" taking in consideration that the events from "Catching Fire" and "Mockingjay" never happened. Now that you have been properly informed you may proceed with reading this file, but keep in mind that all documents found on this server may contain spoilers, proceed at your own risk.»_

_**Prologue**_

_**Fowl Manor, Dublin, Ireland. A few hours after Artemis's return from Panem...**_

The sun had long left the sky when Artemis Fowl decided that he could no longer stand the four walls of his study. Ever since his parents had put the twins to sleep and had left his side to go on with their usual activities, a strange feeling had been looming over the boy... Almost like an electric current going through his veins. It felt irrational for him to be anxious and nervous, and yet he was...

Sighing, the Fowl heir made his way to the kitchen, hoping that he would find there some type of distraction to escape his thoughts. The boy was in the process of pouring himself a glass of water when a deep voice surprised him.

"Is everything alright, sir?"

Artemis looked over at the owner of the voice. It was his trusty manservant, Butler. "Yes, I am fine. Thank you."  
>The tall man observed his Principal. "Are you sure about that? You seem a bit restless since that meeting with N°1."<p>

"I can assure you that I am alright."

The man took a seat at the kitchen counter. "Then perhaps it has nothing to do with your meeting..." guessed Butler, trying to read through Artemis's mask. The boy did not reply; if he did, his life-long friend would have the opportunity to make assumptions Artemis did not especially want him to make. "If I did not know you better..." started the butler as a small grin began to spread on his lips, "No... That couldn't be," he then said, shaking his head.

"What _couldn't be_?" asked Artemis, raising the eyebrow over his hazel eye.

"It's just that I know this look," shrugged Butler. "Worried, anxious, a bit hopeful... As I said, if I did not know you any better, I'd say that all this is because of a girl." Ever since Artemis's birth, Butler had been prepared to see all kinds of things, but he knew that women were a foreign territory to his friend and that he usually avoided encounters with them.  
>Artemis felt his blood rushing away from his face for a brief moment, only to come back rather visibly on his cheeks. The raven-haired boy turned his gaze away from Butler. "You are right, you know me better. The conclusion you have drawn is inaccurate."<p>

Butler's smile grew a bit wider. "Is it Minerva?"

"What?" Artemis looked back at the man as if the idea was completely ridiculous. "No. Minerva? Really? I haven't spoken to her in weeks, Butler."  
>"But it is about a girl, am I correct?"<br>Artemis turned his head away again. What could he say? Eventually, the boy sighed, granting Butler a shy nod. "Yes, I am afraid you might be correct."

The manservant tried to contain his enthusiasm. "So, a girl who is _not_ Minerva?" He had to admit; he really wondered how Artemis had met one of those.  
>"Yes," exhaled the boy. "And if I may add, I really don't see why you are getting so thrilled over this, Butler." <em>Especially since she is not even born yet.<em>

"It's most likely the part of me that feels like I am a fatherly figure in your life," replied the man.  
>Artemis fought the urge to roll his mismatching eyes. "If you must know, it's nothing big, Butler. She is simply nice and we have some things in common." For instance, they both went through the most traumatic experience of their lives together.<p>

"That's always a good place to start," Butler pointed out. "Just out of curiosity, why are you so nervous?"

"I invited her over and I am not certain that she will accept my offer."

"Does she live in the region?"

"Not exactly..."

"Where did you two meet?"

"We met at a scientific gathering focusing on the technologies of the future," lied Artemis. "I attended it a few weeks ago, don't you recall?"  
>Butler nodded, slightly squinting. He remembered the convention, but not the girl in question. "Of course..." he said slowly. "She must be clever if she caught your eye."<p>

Artemis tried his best not to smile as the different moments he had spent with Silyah flashed through his mind. "Yes, she is clever."

"Pretty?" offered Butler. Despite his efforts, Artemis was unable to hold back his blush. "I'll take this as a yes," laughed Butler. "Did she seem to be... Interested?"

Artemis nearly choked on the sip of water he had just taken. Once he managed to stop coughing, he turned to face his manservant. "There is a possibility that she might be, but as you are well aware of, reading women's emotions is not exactly my strongest suit, old friend."

"Well, she did keep in touch with you after the convention if you actually managed to invite her here, am I right?"

The boy gave a simple nod. There was no need to explain the fact that she was from the future...

"In this case, I think that you have your chances," said Butler, encouragingly as he gave Artemis a light pat on the shoulder.

The raven-haired boy tried to smile, but his attempt failed rather quickly. If he took things from a realistic point of view, he didn't actually have much of a chance unless Silyah stayed in the past, and that would be very improbable, perhaps dangerous considering the paradoxes it might cause.

"When is she dropping by for a visit?" asked Butler.

"If she accepts the invitation, she should be here tomorrow morning."

"Who should I keep an eye out for?" The manservant was almost smirking.

"Her name is Silyah Natho. She is about my height and has long curly brown hair, pale blue eyes and skin just as pale as mine."

"That's rather specific," laughed Butler. As a man who loved romance novels, he was really glad for Artemis, but as a bodyguard, he would have to make sure to remain professional.

"As you are well aware of, I pay a lot of attention to details."

Butler sighed, "Yes, that is indeed very much like you."

Artemis acquiesced, hiding a smile under his hand as his mind sent him memories of a certain Effie Trinket. She had always made a point of telling Beetee how observant she was... Oddly enough, she had been right about Silyah and Artemis before they even knew that they would end up relatively close to each other.

"If you excuse me, I think that I will head for bed," said Artemis after a short moment.

"Expecting her early tomorrow?"

"Hopefully..."

"I can't wait to meet her," Butler smiled once more.

"Oh, before it's too late, don't tell Juliet about this. She would not give me a moment of peace if she learned about my guest."

"Alright," replied Butler. "Try not to worry too much and get a good night of sleep. I'm sure she'll come."

Artemis gave a small nod before leaving the kitchen, heading back to his bedroom. He had to admit; telling Butler about Silyah had made him feel a bit better.

He knew that she would be clever enough to find and crack his code.


	2. Chapter One, Elijah

**Part I, "The Secret"**

_**Chapter One, Elijah**_

_**Victors' Village, District 3, Panem. Almost six months after the 80**__**th**__** Annual Hunger Games.**_

Silyah Natho tightened her coat's collar around her neck, careful not to let her cold fingers brush her skin. After pulling up her hood, she dug her hands in her pockets and got out of her driveway. Even though she was feeling a bit better than during her first week back in her district, the girl was going through a tough period due to the snow which had begun to fall and stay on the ground. Each falling crystal brought the young woman back to her nightmares and to the arena. After five months and three weeks, the Hunger Games victor thought that she would have managed to heal most of her traumas, but as it turned out, she had started to wonder if they would ever leave her side.

Sighing, Silyah took a turn at the end of the street, kicking the small amount of snow on the ground with the tip of her black high-heeled boots. She blew a few snowflakes away from her face, seeing the faint trace of her breath in the air. Trying to clear her mind as much as possible, the brunette chose to concentrate on the route she now knew by heart; the road to the Fowl residence. Being only a few streets away from the Victors' Village, the stone house would soon become visible for the walking girl.

Once again losing to the power of her wandering mind, Silyah let her daydreams guide her to the metal gate surrounding the residence and she mindlessly punched in the code she had been entrusted with to open the barricade. After closing it behind her, the young woman quickly walked to the front door, giving it three knocks.

She could barely believe that not so long ago, it was _he _who had knocked at her door to change her life all over again...

* * *

><p><em><strong>Six weeks after Silyah's return from the Hunger Games<strong>_

"May I come inside? It seems like you just got out of bed... I am sorry if I come at an inappropriate moment..." Those words had followed the raven-haired boy's introduction and had made Silyah snap back to the real world.

_Elijah Fowl._

The girl looked down at herself, mentally slapping her cheek, both to unfreeze herself and because she had greeted this newcomer who claimed to be a Fowl dressed in nothing but her nightwear and sporting the messiest hair-do she had ever worn. It was a miracle the young man had even recognized her; she was sure that she had not even looked that bad during the Games.

Still a bit stunned, Silyah invited the boy in, leading him towards the kitchen. "You can wait here and take a seat... I will... Get dressed..." she uttered, feeling her face getting red due to her embarrassment.

Elijah nodded. "Take your time."

About fifteen minutes later, Silyah emerged from her bedroom dressed in a black long-sleeved shirt and matching pants. She had tamed her hair as well as she could and went through the effort of looking a tad polished despite the fact that she felt like a mess on the inside.

After having walked back to the kitchen, she took a seat in front of Elijah. "So..." She eyed him.

The boy looked back at her, one of his eyebrows slightly raised, clearly waiting for her to say more.

"Elijah Fowl?" said Silyah slowly, having to take a deep calming breath after her statement. "Why should I believe you?"

"I don't see any reason as to why you shouldn't believe me," answered the dark-haired boy.

"I know quite a few..." whispered the girl. "Pressure from the Capitol, a mean-spirited prank, a test to see how mad I became," her voice was low and almost raspy.

"Miss Natho, while I can see the logic in those assumptions, I can assure you that none of them are the case," promised Elijah. "You have suffered quite enough as it is if you ask me, so I would not have come here unless it was an absolute necessity."

Somehow, that last sentence had not done anything to ease Silyah's worries. "Absolute necessity?" she nearly stuttered.

Elijah gave a small nod. "Yes... If it can help with proving my honesty, before I explain anything, I would like you to know that I am aware of time travel and the confusion it can sometimes cause."

The brunette felt her drumming heart sink down to her stomach. If he knew those things, his story was getting more and more convincing, which could only mean one thing... She could not yet voice her quickly shifting thoughts, and thus found herself staring at the young man in front of her, completely speechless.

"Are you alright, Miss Natho? I imagine this is not the easiest of conversations..."

The girl blinked a few times, nodding very slowly. "Where is this going?"

"I am sure you've got some theories regarding the answer to your question," said the boy, his blue eyes resting on hers.

Taking yet another breath, Silyah ran a hand through her long hair. "Go on," she requested dryly. Needless to say, the girl felt like plunging her head in a bucket of cold water. "Wait... First... I _need_ to know; _what is your link to Artemis Fowl_?" The young woman's voice threatened to give up on her when she spoke the last two words.

"Which Artemis Fowl are you referring to? I am assuming it's the second one," Elijah gave her a look, tilting his head ever so slightly, exposing his faintly pointed ear in the process.

Silyah swallowed back the lump in her throat. "Unless you haven't watched the Games, you know exactly which one," she replied, feeling as though she was being played with.

A vague smile found his way to Elijah's lips. "The second one, then," he nodded. "My 'link' to him is a rather direct one."

"How many years has it been? How many generations got to live before you?" she asked, distressed.

"Well, if my father's father's father was Artemis's son..."

Silyah was torn between sending the guy a deadly glare and collapsing on the table. Collecting all her inner strength, she chose the first option.

"I am Artemis's great-great-grandson, Miss Natho."

Silyah rested her elbows on the table, burying her face deep into her palms. "Why are _you_ here? And why _now_?"

"I am here now because you know about the People and those in charge of New Haven aren't so enthusiastic about that."

"Meaning?" Silyah glanced up and then looked away from the dark-haired boy, his familiar appearance only reminding her of what she had lost by saving a life.

"To put things simply; you either have to come with me and trust me, or have all memories of Artemis, Fairies and magic deleted from your mind."

The girl's eyes shot back up, taken aback by the drastic second option, but then she started to feel at war with herself. While her memories of Artemis were, for the most part, the most precious things she owned, she was, on the other hand, a mere broken girl; a Hunger Games' victor... One memory wipe could save her so much pain... However, there was another variable in the equation. Silyah got up from her chair and walked to the kitchen sink in which dishes were still piled. "I have to show you something."

A subtle frown appeared on Elijah's face. "Alright, but quickly, if you don't mind."

The girl grabbed a knife from the utensils, trying to suppress the flashes of her last day in the arena that usually accompanied such a gesture. Taking a deep breath, she placed the point of the knife on her index.

Elijah started to feel slightly uneasy as he saw the girl handle the silver blade. He hadn't pushed her too far, had he? He knew victors were often emotionally unstable... Thankfully, the girl didn't seem to have the intention of taking her life, or his for that matter. The raven-haired boy raised an eyebrow, observing the small red line that had appeared on the girl's finger.

As a drop of blood fell from Silyah's hand and into the sink, a pale blue spark escaped from the cut, sealing it shut in less than three seconds. "I might have accidentally taken something from Artemis before he left," she breathed.

Elijah let go of a light gasp as he realized what had just happened. He had not anticipated this turn of even at all... A minor flaw in his original mission... "You have magic," he mumbled, mostly just to confirm it to himself. "That's interesting, if not slightly alarming."

"Alarming?" Silyah tossed the knife back in the sink. "Just consider how alarming it was when they picked me up from the arena without a single scratch. The Capitol is on my back; they've got me on a case study, both for that and for the fact that I have yet to explain Artemis's last moment in the arena," she snapped, letting go of the steam that had been rising inside her.

Not wanting to upset the girl any further, Elijah chose to speak in a calm manner. "The People might do more than that, Miss Natho," he said. "If they deem you to be too much of a risk for their well being, they might eliminate all options save for the one in which they wipe your memories. They have gotten rather paranoid over the years."

"I don't want to forget. I can't. That's the last thing _he_ told me: 'Don't forget me.'" Silyah was now resolute about the idea.

"I know you don't, which is why it would be preferable if you came with us to New Haven on your free will. Once we get there, we will be able to get things sorted out with the Council and you might not have to lose your memories of Artemis. In fact, staying in New Haven might even enlighten you about him."

Silyah furrowed her brows. "Alright..." she said after a moment of silence. "However, what am I supposed to do with my victor status? I've got engagements, interviews, a tour and, most importantly, I have to pretend that everything about my life is as normal as a victor's life could be."

"That's the good thing about having easy access to fairy technology," said Elijah, his lips forming a smirk. The grin combined with the faint glint in his eyes, made him resemble Artemis Fowl the Second even more. "Given that a trip to New Haven would indeed look suspicious, I think that it would be a good idea for you to come with me so we can contact _them_ and temporarily sort things out."

"And who is 'them,' exactly?" Silyah lightly tilted her head to the right.

"The Fairy Council," said Elijah, staying a bit vague.

"Okay..." Silyah's head was spinning. She felt that her life would never, ever be the same again.

"A lot to take in, I imagine..." the boy sat up in his chair as he crossed his left leg over his right one. "I can speak with the people in charge and see how long they will allow you to walk around freely until they have to come for you in person."

"Come for me?" asked the girl, a dose of panic in her voice. She remembered the hovercraft and the caretakers who had tried to restrain her after the Games to feed her some morphling.

"Yes," Elijah gave a small nod. "But no need to panic, they won't harm you, they just need to act with caution. I will help you, they owe me."

Silyah walked back to the chair she had previously occupied, rattling her long nails on the table. "What have you got me in into?" she gritted her teeth, unsure as to whom she was asking the question to between Artemis's memory and Elijah.

"What have _I _gotten you into, Miss Natho?" asked the boy, raising an eyebrow at her.

Silyah was about to shrug away his statement, but she could not help herself. "To be fair, you're the one who's... _Family member _got me involved in this fairy business," she replied.

"And you believe that this situation is my fault?" Elijah sighed. "Perhaps I hold some of the responsibilities, but _you_ chose to save Artemis back in the Games."

"What would have happened if I had not saved him?" she retorted, now raising her own eyebrow. "You would certainly not have any responsibilities to take care of right now." _Ouch, that was bitter,_ thought the girl._ Is that who I am now; a bitter victor?_

Elijah looked at her, trying to hide the fact that her last comment had felt like a sting. "True, I would not be around to interfere with your life, but here I am, so we will both have to live with the decision you made."

The brunette furrowed her brows again. "So, what do you think the _council_ will require of me?" she asked, annoyed.

"For now and until we have this mess cleared up, you'll mosy likely have to act like everything is normal... Well, your definition of normal, of course. Eventually, you will have to go on your Tour since cancelling it would probably raise more suspicion than anything, however, I have a feeling they will request for someone to travel along with your group to keep tabs on you." Even though Elijah was only 16 years old, he spoke like someone double his age, much like the first Fowl Silyah had known.

"A bodyguard of some sort?" Silyah made a strange grimace. She would have to travel with the whole District 3 team and a fairy-protecting bodyguard?

"I'd say you'd be more like a guarded prisoner... Although, that will highly depend on who will be accompanying you."

_Prisoner!_ thought Silyah, feeling that a hysteria crisis was on its way. "Prisoner!"

"Not you, it's just the situation. It was the closest thing that came to mind. You will be... Held under observation just to be sure you won't say things you aren't supposed to," the boy corrected himself.

"Never in a hundred years will you see me betray Artemis," mentioned the girl, feeling a bit offended by the lack of trust the People seemed to have towards her.

"Well, technically, it's already been 119 years since he came back from the Games," corrected Elijah. "And they can't take any risks, for all they know, you could get upset and blurt something out by accident."

The remaining part of Silyah's rationality attempted to calm her down. "Fair point..." she said through clenched teeth. "But I've got one more question for you; if you don't think you are responsible of this situation, why are _you_ here?"

Elijah looked at her, a thoughtful expression printing itself onto his face. Why had he come? He could have waited for someone else to pick up the job... Maybe he wanted to do something new and different for a change, perhaps he was just bored and tired of his twin sister's constant talking and curious about this "mission." "Part of my job," he shrugged. "And obviously, I thought I had more chances of convincing you because of my resemblance to Artemis."

"They would actually want to hurt me..." mumbled Silyah to herself, her voice barely audible as she sank back down on her chair, clutching the aremèsia pendant hanging from her neck. "When Artemis told me about them, _the People_, he described them as his most precious allies and friends. They've changed since his time, haven't they?"

Elijah Fowl gave a short lifeless laugh. "Change is merely to tip of the iceberg. They aren't as peaceful as they used to be; if they see no other option, they will neutralize an enemy, but that is what near extinction and war does to a species, I suppose."

Silyah looked up to Elijah through her lashes.

"To save us both some time, may I suggest we go call them now?" offered the raven-haired boy.

The new victor tapped her nails on the table. She had the feeling that the answer to that question would change her entire future...

* * *

><p>Silyah realized that she had been standing in front of the Fowl residence's open door for quite some time when Elijah's voice yanked her from her memories and back to the present. It hadn't taken too long before the door had been opened by the boy.<p>

The brunette shook her head and looked over to the young man. He seemed tired, the slightly darker shade under his blue eyes made it noticeable. "Ah, Silyah, right on time. Come in," he stepped back, allowing her inside the house.

The girl walked in, removing her boots on the entrance's doormat.

"May I take your coat?" asked the boy.

"Yes, thank you," said Silyah, sliding the said coat off her shoulders and tucking her navy blue scarf into its sleeve.

Elijah took the girl's coat, arranging it on a hanger before putting it into the closet. He then gave the watch on his right wrist a short glance. "Actually, we have a few minutes before Kelp calls..."

Silyah fought against a sigh. Elijah hid a small smirk by turning his head away from the girl. He knew that Silyah wasn't the elf's biggest fan. "Care to wait in the living room?"

"Sure," nodded the girl, trailing behind Elijah. As she eyed every detail in the boy's house, she suppressed yet another sigh. It was unbelievable how much had changed in the five months and three weeks that had slowly passed between the Games and the present day.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Hey! Just letting you know that we know have a group on DeviantART called Take-2-Pay-4-1 and also a Tumblr of the same name! :)<strong>_


	3. Chapter Two, The Fowls

_**Chapter Two, The Fowls**_

_**A few minutes after Silyah and Elijah's first encounter.**_

Silyah dragged her heels behind Elijah Fowl, still wondering why she had agreed to follow him to his house. _Oh, right_, he had very subtly implied that she was now considered a prisoner of the People. The girl rolled her eyes. "So, what will happen once we have called the fa – the People?" she inquired, avoiding the use of the word "fairy" to help her case.

"As I said earlier, we'll try to work out some dead-lines and then we'll see how things will pan out," replied Elijah, not exactly elaborating on the details.

"So we'll set the time I have left before I have to come to them?"

"Or before they come for you," nodded Elijah. "We will also plan how you'll get to spend your time until your meeting with the representatives of the People."

"Well that's nice," mumbled Silyah, once again using that strange bitter tone she had begun to use since she came back to District 3.

"No need for that tone," Elijah told her. "We're the good guys…"

Silyah raised an eyebrow. "If you say so," she retorted under her breath as the dark-haired boy lead her towards a gated house.

The residence behind the massive wrought iron gate was made of old, yet seemingly sturdy stones, which was covered in climbing vines from its first to its second floor. Oddly enough, the house, which would have looked out of place in a country like Panem appeared to have been built a long time ago and it truly belonged in the landscape. Seeing it, Silyah wondered how she could have possibly missed such a building while walking through District 3, but she then remembered that her memories had been the only ones left untouched after Artemis's departure.

Elijah smiled slightly. "We were always here… From your perspective, we weren't before the end of the Games since Artemis had not completed his timeline yet. When he was sent back, everything went back to how it was supposed to be." The boy's smile became a smirk.

The Hunger Games victor tried not to be affected by Elijah's statement. "Stop doing that," she murmured as she looked at the boy, seeing his all too familiar grin. "Sorry, but this is a bit of a traumatic experience…" she sighed. "First of all, there is this whole paradox to take in, and… Well, you look so much like him with that smirk on your face…"

"I'm afraid I didn't have a say in my genetic code, Ms. Natho," shrugged Elijah. "Now, this way." He opened the gate by entering a code on its digital keypad. "This might seem paranoid, but we have good reasons," he quickly explained.

"For once I understand you… I am no stranger to paranoia, _Mr. Fowl_," said Silyah as she followed Elijah towards the front door, wondering if being called "Mr. Fowl" would bug him as much as it had bothered Artemis. Due to the absence of dry remarks coming from Elijah, the young woman concluded that he didn't mind. Perhaps he was used to being called as such.

Once they reached the front of the residence, Elijah held the door open for Silyah.

"Thank you," uttered the girl quietly as she stepped inside the house. She had barely set a foot inside the dwelling that she was greeted by a clear and relatively loud voice.

"Oh my goodness! You're here at last!" rejoiced a girl with ebony hair and skin so light that there was no way to doubt the fact that her last name was Fowl. "I couldn't wait to officially meet you. I'm a big fan of yours. Well, how could I not be a fan; without you winning those Games, I would probably not even be here today." The girl's grin turned into a mischievous smile when she caught sight of Elijah. "Never in a hundred years I would have thought that you'd bring a girl back home," she giggled.

Elijah groaned. "Oh, be quiet Haley," he said under his breath. "Someone had to do it and they would not have trusted you to complete the task."

"Yeah, right," Haley raised one of her eyebrows. "Anyway," she sighed. "Nice to meet you," she told Silyah, coming up to her to shake her hand. "I hope my twin treated you nicely."

Elijah faintly muttered something that sounded like a bad word borrowed from the Gnommish lexicon.

"Well, I took it for granted that the Fowl boys were socially awkward with the ladies," replied Silyah, allowing a bit of humor and a sliver of hope to show through her voice since Haley seemed to be friendlier than her brother.

The Fowl boy in question gave her a look. "I am not socially awkward."

Silyah sent him his stare right back. "One of the first things you told me was that I would be a prisoner from now on," she said, causing Haley to let go of a small gasp and a chuckle.

"That's not what I said. I said that it was the closest thing I could imagine to describe what the Council had in mind." Elijah grumbled. "Females…"

"Hey watch it, mister," retorted Haley, sending her brother a serious look before cracking a small smile. "On another note, you better go to the conference room right now. You have a missed call from New Haven."

Elijah exhaled noisily. "Always so much to do these days, never a free moment…" He rolled his clear blue eyes. "Come on, Ms. Natho."

"See, that's a bit awkward," said Silyah, once again finding herself following Elijah. "Forget the 'Ms. Natho,' you can call me Silyah."

"I know… But first names aren't really… My thing… It feels too personal and…" Elijah sighed again. "You know how problematic that can become… _Silyah_…" The way he had spoken her name sounded so familiar to the girl that she was almost taken aback.

"Do you think that Caesar Flickerman and I are that close?" asked Silyah, trying to clear her mind by bringing the subject of conversation elsewhere. "We're barely acquainted, yet he still calls me by my first name every time we talk."

"Well, that's what Flickerman does," said Elijah. "I've never met him in person, thank goodness. Too eccentric of a character for me…"

"He's one of the very few Capitol residents who doesn't mind being seen with a District kid, so he's fine in my book."

"He might be, but he is still too extroverted for my tastes," commented Elijah as he made his way to the conference room's entrance.

"If you think that Caesar is extravagant, just try to picture Effie Trinket being at your side nearly 24/7," said Silyah, realizing that deep down, she missed the _fashionistic_ Effie Trinket. The woman was so… oddly colorful.

Elijah shivered internally. "She seems a tad nuts at times. I have seen her when she visited District 3, but I never properly met her," he told the brunette, closing the doors of the conference room behind her, completely oblivious to the fact that Silyah was no longer paying attention to him.

"Wow…" breathed the surprised girl, looking around the room as if she was seeing for the first time.

Elijah grinned. "Fancy, isn't it? We're still Fowls, after all."

A large glass table projecting low holograms was at the center of the room, which was just light enough to actually see where one was going, yet as dark as it was required to optimize the holographic projections' quality.

"I won't get to play with the tech, right?" presumed Silyah, giving in to one of her first passions as though she was a toddler wanting to play with her father's tools.

"Maybe later when we don't have important matters to address," said Elijah.

"Fair enough," replied the girl, trying not to look too pleased.

Elijah sat down in a chair, the section of the glass screen in front of him lighting up, making his face and eyes reflect its soft blue light.

"Should I sit down too or should I wait for an introduction?" wondered Silyah.

"Wait there," Elijah told her. "I'll see what Kelp wants first."

Silyah nodded as the boy's fingers began to run over some of the holographic keys to get the conference started.

From the depths of the underground city of New Haven, a certain Trouble Kelp, now Head of the Fairy Council, answered Elijah's call. "Morning," said the elf dryly as soon as his image appeared in the Fowl's conference room, looking as though he was seated in one of the leather chairs surrounding the table.

"No need to be hostile with me Chairman," murmured Elijah. "I know you have some sort of an old grudge towards my family, but please, lay that aside during professional conversations." No wonder he annoyed Trouble; save for his Panem accent, he sounded so much like Artemis to the LEPrecon Commander.

"Which reminds me, Holly says 'Hi,'" the holographic man rolled his eyes, mouthing something along the lines of: "_Professional,_" before clearing his throat.

"Tell her I send my regards," said Elijah, his tone like a businessman's, which was not too odd if one considered his ancestry. "Now… Haley told me you had called while I was away."

"Yes, she told me that you had left to get the girl who could pose us a threat and that you were yet to be back."

Hearing those words, Silyah could not help but furrow her brows.

"She _could have been_ a threat, but she hasn't been up to date and I am certain that it will remain this way," countered Elijah. "Actually, she can testify that by herself."

"Tell her to enter the conference area."

On that cue, Silyah approached the table, eyeing Elijah to get his approval. The boy gave her a brief nod and the brunette thus sat beside him, suddenly appearing as a hologram on the conference table in New Haven. "Good morning," she said politely.

The elf saluted her. "Commander Trouble Kelp, Head of the New Haven Council," he presented himself. "Good morning, ma'am."

"So you act polite with her… How interesting," commented Elijah under his breath.

Ignoring Elijah's observation, Silyah went on with the presentations. "Silyah Natho… Victor of the 80th Annual Hunger Games." The girl tried hard not to wince at her own official title.

"Foaly the Centaur," added a new voice as a face appeared beside Trouble Kelp's hologram. "Under-appreciated LEP tech genius, and if I may add, the very person who saved your life and Artemis's a few weeks ago."

"And here we go," Elijah rolled his blue eyes. "You can gloat later, Foaly," he told the centaur. "We have more important things to discuss today, remember?"

"Yes, yes," acquiesced Foaly. "However, I have to mention that I have been pulled from my grandfatherly duties to be in this call, so I think that I was entitled to a proper introduction."

Elijah pressed his thumb and index finger on the bridge of his nose, his patience running thin. "Well now that you have, Foaly, why don't we go on with the reason of this call?"

"Of course," said Trouble, also tired of Foaly's self-loving behavior. "As you know, we wanted to evaluate the level of danger we're currently exposed to because of this _mud girl_."

"What did he call me?" Silyah whispered to Elijah, unsure of how she should feel about this new nickname.

"It's one of the People's ways to say 'human.' It is kind of obsolete and quite rude," he explained, looking at Trouble. "Her name is Silyah Natho, Kelp."

"And if I may add," Silyah cleared her throat, "I don't think I qualify as a mere 'mud girl' anymore…" She brushed a strand of hair away from her face.

Trouble slightly tilted his head and raised an eyebrow. "Why would that be?"

Elijah smiled a full-fledged vampire smirk.

"Well," began Silyah. "According to my theory, something happened during the last moment of the Games… I had to help Artemis go through the Ritual and… Because of the rush of emotions we both felt when we were sure that he was alive and about to be saved we… _Kissed_… Then, I felt something strange taking over me. If I am correct, it is at this precise moment that some of Artemis's magic transferred into me."

Trouble Kelp looked a tad shocked for a split second, but he quickly regained his commanding façade. "Do you have any proofs to support this statement?" he asked.

The girl turned to Elijah. "I have seen her heal small cuts," he confirmed. "She's not making it up, she does possess magic. I don't know how much she can do, but there were blue sparks."

"Therefore, if the secret you are trying to protect is both your existence and your magic, know that we are pretty much in the same boat now," stated Silyah. "Have my word; Elijah is the only one who knows about it, I have not even told my own parents." A realization suddenly struck the girl. "However…" she weighed her words carefully. "The Capitol might be onto something considering that when they picked me up from the arena, I was completely free of wounds."

"But no need to worry about that," added Elijah quickly. "They can easily be led off the trail," he said, as though he had some ties with the Capitol. "They won't draw any unwanted conclusions."

"The Capitol?" spat Trouble. "The people who have the ultimate power over Panem? Those who are not even bothered when it comes to using their citizens' lives at their own advantage?"

"Calm down, Kelp. Saying who they are and what they do won't change anything," retorted Elijah with a harsh voice. "I can deal with it. New Haven is as safe as it will always be under my family's guard."

"It's _Commander Kelp!_" snapped the elf. "And either way, as we previously discussed, this young lady must imperatively make her way to New Haven in District 13 and be kept in sight until she comes here. It is both for her safety and ours."

"I am fully aware of that, but you must keep in mind that, as a victor, Silyah must attend certain events, not to mention that it would raise suspicion if she were to suddenly leave District 3," Elijah turned to the pale-skinned girl at his side.

"We could wait until the Victory Tour," she offered.

"I suggest having someone watch over her until then. She could be accompanied to public events from now on, so you would be assured that she will not cause any scenes. Not that I think she will…" added Elijah, feeling the girl's squinting eyes falling on him.

"Any suggestions as to who that person could be?" asked Trouble.

"Myself, of course."

The LEP commander fell quiet for a moment. "You do seem to be already involved in this case…" observed the holographic elf.

"Indeed," confirmed Elijah. "It would spare you a lot of time to trust me; I am already in District 3 and I know how the surveillance of a person is to be handled."

"Hold on," interjected Silyah, who was already seeing a flaw in that plan. "If this whole thing is about not making a scene, how can we explain the fact that someone who happens to look like Artemis will follow me everywhere I go? Who could he possibly be?" she asked, pointing a thumb in Elijah's direction. "In this time, Artemis was believed to be Mayor Hewatt's adopted son. If I show up with someone who looks like him during public events, won't it be strange? Unless…" the girl paused, trying to put some order in her stream of thought.

"Unless what?" Trouble turned his attention to Silyah.

The girl now had Elijah's attention as well; he was curious.

"Unless we make this a family affair… Artemis had to be adopted for a certain reason, and here comes his family after his death, devastated over what happened and by how they were not there to support him through this tough time. The "current Fowls" could be Artemis's biological family…"

"Oh, I like this one! She's creative!" Foaly gave the girl a horsy grin.

"That would explain my likeness to him," nodded Elijah. "I'd be his younger… No, his older brother, actually. We could make this work."

"Older brother to his _great-great-grandfather_…" murmured Silyah, still feeling dizzy at the mention of Elijah's relationship to Artemis. "I'm sure that people could buy that if we can come up with a foolproof and plausible story regarding Artemis's adoption." The brunette silently praised herself for now being able to say _his_ name without feeling a pain in her chest.

"It's a decent solution," said Elijah. "I'll see if I can make up a reason…"

Silyah took a deep breath, scanning her brain for ideas. "Money?" she suggested at some point. "Never mind that, with a house like yours, who would we be kidding?"

"I might have an idea," Elijah looked at each of his interlocutors. "What if Artemis's mother was not my father's wife? He could have been given for adoption, but since he'd share a link on my father's side, he'd still be a Fowl," explained the 16-year-old.

"That could work," approved Trouble reluctantly.

"Oh, I know exactly who his mother should be." Silyah smirked, her expression clearly borrowed from a certain Fowl she had once known. "The mayor's wife," she told the group. "She died a while ago… If we can use a little bit of your People's _mesmer_, we can build a story to cover everything up and satisfy the Capitol's gossip. This is a bit extreme, but what if the mayor's wife had a relationship with Elijah's father and died shortly after having given birth to their baby? In order not to tarnish Hewatt's reputation, your father could have agreed to let him adopt the kid as his own."

"That's quite dramatic," needless to say, Foaly almost felt like clapping.

A smirk matching Silyah's made its way onto Elijah's lips. "Excellent. As far as the technical aspect goes, that can easily be done. The only thing is that we will have to get Father's approval first." Elijah glanced at the LEP commander. "The Capitol will have enough Fowl drama to deal with if we feed them that story."

"Indeed…" replied Kelp, the hand on his chin going to the bridge of his nose as Foaly asked Silyah if she had ever tried to write romance novels. "Rather than answering the centaur, tell me, _Silyah_, do your magical abilities extend to the _mesmer_, or will we have to bring some of our people to work on the mayor's case?"

Elijah gave a little cough. "I can take care of it on my own. As you know very well, I do possess the _mesmer_, Kelp," he then said, clearly feeling underrated.

The commander had heard the boy, but he was still waiting for Silyah's answer.

"I don't really know what I am capable of," admitted the girl. "However, I can easily 'break in' the mayor's house. We both mourn the same person, after all…" She slightly lowered her gaze. "Perhaps I could bring him some aremèsias from my garden. He would probably invite me in and I could introduce him to Elijah."

"After that, I could do some quick brain work and we'll be all set. This shouldn't give us any problems," said Elijah with a confidence that usually drove Trouble insane.

"First good news of the day." Trouble fought against the urge to roll his eyes; he was indeed bothered by Elijah's "Fowlesque" self-assurance.

"Rough day, then," Elijah smiled slightly.

"Elijah?" A soft knock came from behind the door of the conference room.

The boy's expression turned into a light frown. There were a few more points that needed to be discussed. "A second, Mother," he called out before looking towards Trouble and Foaly. "I will contact you again after sorting this out with my parents."

Trouble nodded. "Is it safe to say that, for now, the situation is under control?" His eyes fell into Silyah's. He was staring at her as though they both were present in the same room.

"As biased as I may sound, Artemis trusted me with his life and your People trusted him; I think it is safe to assume that you can do the same with me," replied the girl with a firm voice.

"Good," said the elf, oddly softly. "Then you have the official permission to go back to your daily activities for now. We will plan weekly calls with you from now on… As for you, Elijah, we'll speak again soon."

"I'll call," agreed Elijah before ending the conversation.

The door of the conference room then opened itself and a petite woman walked in. "Dinner is ready, sweetie," she told her son. "I took the liberty of preparing you a plate," she added, looking at Silyah. "Haley told me you were here," she explained.

"Mother, please, don't call me like that; I'm not a kid, I'm sixteen," muttered Elijah to the dark-haired woman. "Calling me 'sweetie' makes me sound like a three-year old."

"My apologies," laughed the woman. "Won't you introduce me to our guest?"

"Silyah, this is Elysande, my mother."

The girl got up from her chair and walked up to the newcomer. "Pleased to meet you," she said, shaking her hand. It seemed to her as though she had become an expert hand-shaker ever since her return from the Capitol.

"Likewise," replied Elysande. "Our family owes you a great deal," she smiled, then turned her head. "We better make our way to the kitchen before the food gets cold."

Elijah got up. "So, I take it that Father is home?"

"Yes, he arrived shortly after you did."

"Good, we have to have a word with the both of you."

The dark-haired woman furrowed her brows. As of lately, her son's brain seemed to be completely geared towards the "mission" he had accepted from the People. As a child, the boy had been a bit more laid back, just like his sister, but then one day and out of the blue, he changed. Slightly shaking her head, Elysande led the two teenagers to the dining room where two people were already seated.

"Saved you a spot," smiled Haley as she caught sight of Silyah. She patted the seat beside her own.

Elijah eyed his sister. Sometimes, her behavior was a complete mystery to him.

"Thank you, Haley," replied the blue-eyed brunette as she sat beside Elijah's twin sister, hoping that she remembered her name right.

"So, what did the People say? Are you as dangerous as a nuclear threat?" asked the raven-haired girl, her grin turning into a Fowl smirk.

Elijah sat down at his usual spot, still looking at his sister. Was she trying to be funny?

"Not quite," answered Silyah. "Or at least, I don't think so… Well, I now have to be followed and watched when I'm in public for safety measures… Does that make me a danger?"  
>"Oh, let me guess, <em>he's <em>your watch dog?" Haley pointed towards her twin, who gave her a deadly gaze.

"I am not a _guard dog_, Hal," he blurted.

"If you say so," shrugged Haley, sharing an amused look with Silyah.

Elijah murmured something in Gnommish and turned to his food.

"Mind your language, son. Even Gnommish has its sensibilities," suddenly said the black-haired man seated at the end of the rectangular table.

The teenager lowered his gaze at once. "Yes, Father."

The man had a serious look on his face, but not exactly a severe one; once again, it was a trademark of the Fowl family. Although his son looked a lot like him, the resemblance between the young man's father and the boy Silyah had known during the Games was less obvious than the one he shared with Elijah… Well, that was until Elysande pronounced his name…

"Artemis, I believe that our son has something important to tell us, isn't that right?" All eyes went to Elijah.

The blue-eyed boy gave his mother the smallest of smiles. "Yes, it has to do with Ms. Na… Erm… Silyah… As she pointed out, Commander Kelp will not allow her to go to any public events without someone there to keep an eye on her…"

"Furthermore, we might have to make some modifications to your family history to explain Elijah's presence during those events," added Silyah as soon as she found her voice back; she was yet to be over the fact that the boy's father had been named after Artemis.

Not losing a second, Elijah rapidly explained the plan they had devised earlier to his listening parents.

"We came up with this idea on the spot," mentioned Silyah as soon as the boy was done. "I understand how this story could cause a scandal in your family, but it's still one of the most believable options."

"To be fair, this scandal would have fewer consequences than the one we are trying to avoid by putting this plan into action," Elijah hoped that his parents would approve of that reasoning.

"It is a logical plan," agreed Artemis Fowl the Third. "It has risks, but frankly, I'd rather face those risks and deal with them with your mother than seeing the other half of our family getting destroyed."

Silyah observed the man as he spoke and it was at this moment that she noticed something odd about this new Artemis; the man's ears were pointy. They were not like Elijah's, which were very faintly pointed and still acceptable by human standards; they were actually extremely close to those of the elf she had just talked to.

"Good, we'll start working on the application of the plan as soon as possible," said Elijah, pleased to have received his father's stamp of approval. He switched his attention to Silyah, noticing how the girl's eyes were on his father's ears. "Fascinating, isn't it? Elfin genes mixed with human DNA."

Silyah blinked a few times. "Let me get this straight…" she whispered slowly. "When Commander Kelp said: "Holly says hi," It was not only a friendly hello, am I correct?"

"She is my great-great-grandmother," confirmed Elijah.

Once again, the urge to dunk her head inside a bucket of freezing water hit Silyah. "She was Artemis's wife?" she managed to utter. "She's still alive?" she added, astonished.

"Of course, nodded Elijah. "She is an elf, her aging process is much slower than human's. She still looks very young, not a day over 40 human years."

Elysande Fowl looked at Silyah with eyes full of understanding. "We're sorry… This might be a lot to take in." She knew how the girl felt; when she had begun her relationship with Artemis the Third, she eventually had to learn about his peculiar family ancestry.

"It's okay…" Silyah shook her head. "I think…"

"It is merely how things are," said Elijah, rising from his chair. "Now, if you excuse me, we'll have to take back this talk in a few minutes. There are some other things I had to take care of today…"

"Am I supposed to follow you, or does this guard thing only work the other way around?" wondered Silyah, still not finished with her meal.

"I have to deal with private matters. I am sure that Haley will be more than pleased to give you a tour of the house."

"Indeed," smiled Haley. "The conference room is nothing compared to the living room."

Elijah sighed. "Be careful, Silyah, don't let my sister drag you into her chaotic mind."

"I'll take the warning, but believe me, I am sure that my mind is far more chaotic than hers," she replied with a tiny smile.

Elijah smirked, and then quietly left the room.

Silyah took a deep breath, mindlessly picking through the food-filled plate in front of her. She could not bring herself to think about the fact that with a single selfless gesture, she affected so many lives.

* * *

><p><strong>Happy birthday to Marie-Pier (aka Mary), one of the two members of the Take-2-Pay-4-1 team! <strong>


	4. Chapter Three, The Alibis

_**Chapter Three, The Alibis**_

_Five months and three weeks_, Silyah kept reminding herself. Six months, one week and two days had painfully ticked away since the Reaping. Five months and three weeks became lost in the past since the end of the Games. Three months and four weeks had passed by ever since Elijah Fowl had introduced himself to the newest Hunger Games victor. During that time frame, the girl had not only gotten to celebrate her sixteenth birthday, but she had also been forced to sit down at the Fowl's conference table eighteen times to call Commander Trouble Kelp and guarantee him over and over again that the People's secrets were perfectly safe with her.

The brunette shook her head, realizing that her eyes had lost their focus on the digital calendar hung up in the Fowl's living room. She told herself to come back to the real world and then took note of a sound coming from beside her.

"Silyah?" Elijah leaned over, snapping his slender fingers before the girl's face in an attempt to catch her attention.

"I'm sorry, what?" She blinked and furrowed her brows, annoyed with herself.

"I have been trying to ask you how you were doing, but you seemed to have your head up in the sky."  
>"Once again…" mumbled Silyah, clearly displeased. "To answer your question; I'm the same as always…"<p>

"Are you sure about that?" asked Elijah, raising his right eyebrow ever so slightly.

"Well, I tried to go back to my parent's house for a few days. Let's just say that it didn't work out for me."

"Tell me about it; it's bad for your mental health to bottle up problems no matter how small."

The girl's hand went around a lock of her hips-long hair. "That's exactly what my mother doesn't understand. With her I'm not allowed to have issues." She crossed her arms. "Thing is, the minute I walked inside, she began to criticize me. She told me that I should take my life back in my hands and go back to school again instead of being 'lazy.' She says that I will never have a future and that… Well, bottom line is; I thought something that scared me quite a bit and it completely confirmed my decision to go live on my own."

A frown appeared on Elijah's face. "You cannot be serious? Your mother actually said… That is outrageous."

"What's truly outrageous is that I thought: 'I'm going to kill her.' Even though I know that I would never do that, I have taken human lives before and that thought was completely unacceptable to me."  
>The boy's frown grew. "You're a victor; you probably need time to get used to not having to look out for potential enemies in every corner."<p>

"I'm just sick and tired of being treated like some type of alien no matter what I do," the girl tightened her crossed arms over her chest. "Mind you, your family is most likely the only human contact I can tolerate and, aside from your mother, your family isn't even 100% human. Go figure."

"And what about Wiress and Beetee? They are quite human from what I know and you seem to be getting along with them both."

"True…" said Silyah slowly. Ever since she had settled in the Victor's Village, Beetee had started to pay her a few visits and eventually, Wiress came along, bringing the girl a meal once a week, or inviting her for dinner. The woman was extremely kind to Silyah even if she had not been her mentor due to the "One Mentor Challenge" – a challenge implemented during the third Quarter, which allowed the Districts to win bigger prizes for their Hunger Games victories if they only had one person coaching both tributes. "However," mentioned Silyah. "They are victors too. They get what it's like to come back from the arena." A brief thought about the two other victors living in the village crossed Silyah's mind. She had seen them on rare occasions, but they both seemed to be extremely distant and perhaps a tad troubled.  
>"But they are people," Elijah pointed out. "Isn't it a good thing that they might understand what you're going through? They <em>can<em> help you."

"They do help me a lot…"

"Exactly."

Silyah ran a hand through her hair. "Shall we go in the conference room?" offered the brunette.

"Why not."  
>"The sooner we'll end the Kelp call, the sooner you'll be able to go pack up for the tour."<p>

"True. It'll be nice not to have to listen to Kelp for some time."

The two of them progressed to the conference room. "You'll get a big break from him until we have to go see him in person."

Elijah made a face. "He is far less charming in person, believe me."

Silyah breathed out a shy laugh. "I did notice that you make him sound like someone who's always frustrated because he is so short compared to us."

"It would not surprise me if it was the case," muttered Elijah with a hint of a smile as he opened the door, holding it for the young woman. Silyah gave a small grunt and walked to her usual chair. The raven-haired boy took a seat beside her. "Let's hope the Chairman is in a better mood today," he said as he set up the conference table to receive the elf's call.

"Surely he trusts me more now. It would be pretty sad if he had yet to realize that I am rather inoffensive." _Aside from the fact that you've killed two people…_ she then thought.

"Oh, he doesn't mind you. It's me he has issues with."

"Let me guess, _long history with your family_?"

"Something along those lines," confirmed Elijah. "I can thank Artemis the Second for that, I suppose."

It was not too long after the young man spoke those words that the conference table lit up and emitted a ringing noise.

"Morning, Ms. Natho. _Fowl_," nodded the LEP Commander as he appeared into view.

"Kelp," muttered Elijah.

"Good morning Commander," saluted Silyah, trying her hardest to stay on the elf's good side.

Elijah did not seem to have such a worry, perhaps because he had known Kelp for so long and that there was no place on his good side for the Fowl boys. "Let's get this over with, shall we? I am sure you have other obligations you're eager to attend to."

"That's right." Trouble grabbed an electronic notepad. "So, as you both know, this is our last conference meeting before Silyah's tour, therefore, I thought that a brief recapitulation of what we've accomplished would be necessary to make sure everything and everyone is well prepared for what's coming."

"In all honesty, Chairman, I don't think that it's a necessity," said Elijah.

"In all honesty, Elijah, I was only asking to be clear and polite. It's actually a mandatory protocol," replied the elf with a forced smile.

Silyah glanced towards Elijah. The boy seemed to be getting really tired of the LEP Commander and the meeting had barely begun. "In this case, please do go on with the recapitulation," she suggested.

Elijah inhaled deeply, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Fine…"

"Alright, so during the first meetings, we worked on consolidating Artemis Fowl's identity in Panem. On the first day, we came up with what you decided to call 'The Mayor Plan' to explain the fact that Artemis the Second was not part of your family. That operation is filed under the 'successful' category. Is everyone in agreement?"

The two teenagers nodded. As far as that case was concerned, they had thought about everything. They had even fixed the fact that it would have been strange for Artemis to call himself like that considering it was also Elijah's father's name. At Holly Short's suggestion, they had made Artemis's official Panemian name Orion Hewatts and had fabricated a story about "Orion" figuring out who his real father was and using his name on official papers to shock him if he was ever Reaped. Basically, all of the loose ends had been tied up, both in the Districts and in the Capitol, thanks to the help of a team of fairies and their _mesmer_.

"After this," continued Kelp, "We moved on to Silyah's magic. We tested you for healing skills, which you do possess and control. Then, we checked if you had the gift of tongue, which you might or might not have if we take in consideration that you are a natural fast learner. We then found out with Foaly's help that even with magic, pure humans cannot shield and when we tested you, you did not seem to be able to use the _mesmer_. Did any of these abilities change?"

"No, sir," affirmed Silyah. "Even after doing the Ritual with Elijah, Haley and Mr. Fowl, my abilities didn't change. However, my magic was indeed renewed."

"Alright. We'll review this situation when you'll be in New Haven," the elf scribbled a few things on his notepad before pressing on its screen to change the page. "Moving along, we talked about the Victory Tour. Let's see if you remember what can and can't be said, shall we?"

Silyah breathed in and out. "Let's see… Obviously, I must say as little as possible about the circumstances surrounding my last minutes in the Games. I must avoid talking about the golden parachute and be very vague about the code language I used with Artemis."

"Don't forget about that time when he healed you and all those when he used his _mesmer_," Elijah pointed out.

"Of course not," acquiesced Silyah, fighting against flashbacks from the Games.

"Good," Kelp turned to Elijah. "On to you, Fowl. Can you summarize what we have established your role to be during our last meeting?"

Elijah sat up in his chair, making sure that the elf knew who the taller man of the two was. There seemed to be a growing ice front between the LEP Commander and him. "I am to follow her around and make sure she abides to your 'guidelines.' I must also remain as invisible as possible and not expose myself to the public eye."

"And what if something goes wrong?" enquired the Commander.

The raven-haired boy's eyes hardened. "Nothing will go wrong, Trouble."

"That's not the point of my question, Fowl. If something goes wrong, you have to be prepared."

"You know me rather well, Kelp. I think you know that I am always prepared for catastrophes."

"In this case," said the elf slowly. "Tell me: what are you going to do if Silyah lets something slip by _accidentally_?"

"If she says something she shouldn't or if she's in a compromising situation, I will subtly remind her to be careful. If she's in too deep, I will tell her what to say next," replied the boy with a dry tone.

"That's what I wanted to hear," nodded Kelp. "Now that we're done with the recap, let's move on to a new subject. As you both know, Silyah's tour is in three days from now, so we roughly have that time span to get in touch with everyone involved in the planning of the said tour so that they all consent to having Elijah follow Silyah during the celebrations. This means that we have to contact Coriolanus Snow and his advisors, as well as the Gamemakers for precaution purposes. Then, we have to get in touch with Effie Trinket, Beetee Latier and Silyah's entire preparation team."

"Do you think we should contact the train operator?" wondered Silyah. "That man probably knows who's supposed to embark in his vehicle, after all."

"Good point," Kelp added the idea to his digital list. "As far as the technicalities go, we will only have to _mesmerize_ the higher-ups of Panem into telling the others that they have allowed Silyah to have a guest on the tour. The official story will be that Silyah's psychiatrist thought it would be better for her mental health to have someone her age to talk to until she can be let into bigger groups of people. Elijah would have been selected because he wanted to know more about his half-brother. Two birds, one stone."

"Sounds reasonable to me," agreed Silyah. Surely, the statement contained some type of truth considering that the last time she had been in a large group for a family dinner, some plates had gone through a very bad time with no chance of recovery.

Elijah slightly furrowed his eyebrows. This plan needed to work. "How many of your men can help? Not that I could not do it alone with the time frame we have to work with; it's just that it would be quite tiring to _mesmerize_ people through a screen all weekend."

"Oh, you poor thing. If you recall, last time we did a _mesmer_ operation, you were barely involved. The LEP has highly trained teams, worry not."

For a second, Elijah was eyeing the elf leader's hologram as if his highest desire currently was to strangle it. The look faded as the boy let go of an exaggerated sigh. "Just send us what we'll need us to do and we'll handle the situation."

"You will receive a description of what you will have to do right after this call," grumbled Kelp. "Now, before we all lose our patience, there is one more topic we have to address; your stay in District 13. Fowl, is the Phoenix still operational?"

"My sister ran a full-system and an exterior check only a few days ago. It's hot and ready to go."

"Marvellous. After the tour, you will take Silyah to the Phoenix and leave for New Haven. Haley can come too if she wants to. However, we have to make sure that Silyah has an alibi as to why she won't be in District 3 for a few days after her trip."

Silyah thought about it for a moment. "I could get sick. With all the people I'll have to meet during the tour, it would be believable for me to catch something contagious and be down for a few days. I usually don't get many visitors, but I could post a note in one of my windows to say that I'd prefer not to contaminate anyone in case someone does come."

"Do you often receive calls?" asked Trouble.

"Every once in a while, my mother calls me."

"In this case, we will provide you with a communicator linked to your home phone as soon as you'll arrive in 13. It's a small precaution, but it might be useful."

"It's better to be safe than sorry," approved Silyah.

Despite his general prejudices about humans, Trouble had to admit that the Hunger Games victor was being very cooperative and rational. She demonstrated an overall good understanding of the situation.

"Once you're in 13, or New Haven as _we_ call it, you will reside with Major Short. The Fowls will have their usual rights of access within the whole district; however, Ms. Natho will have a restricted access only. Her rights may change over time. The LEP and the Council will try to make your stay in 13 as quick as possible, but you will both have to expect to be here for at least two days." Kelp glanced up to see if the two teenagers were still listening to him, which they mostly did. Well, while Silyah was listening, Elijah was giving him looks of despair. After a sigh, the elf went on. "When you'll have a minute, consider sending us your food preferences so we can get whatever product you humans eat nowadays. Any questions?"

"Actually, yes…" Silyah straightened her back. "With all due respect, you have gotten to know me since our first meeting, so why do I have to go meet you in person? You know I'm honest and if you didn't believe it, you could have asked Elijah to _mesmerize_ me into oblivion."

Elijah's gaze traveled from Silyah to Kelp. He would most certainly enjoy watching him try to find an explanation that would not alarm Silyah.

"Ms. Natho… I wouldn't want to frighten you, but while some people truly want to give you a chance, you are facing a trial here. We are offering you a chance to represent yourself in front of the People and some of us are too paranoid to trust holographic screens."

While Silyah was waiting for the news to sink in, Elijah swore he could have heard Foaly snorting somewhere in the same room as the LEP Commander.

"Also," continued Trouble. "We suspect that…" A deadly glare from the blue-eyed Fowl boy stopped him mid-sentence. "Well, never mind. We will explain everything you need to know when you'll be here. Do you happen to have any other interrogations?"

Silyah shook her head despite her frustration. She knew that some things were being kept from her, but she was also aware that her chances of getting simple and clear answers were very slim.

"I believe we covered everything." Trouble set his electronic notepad down. "I will send you the details of the last mission as soon as possible. Until then, this meeting is officially over. Good luck on the tour."

"Thank you," mumbled Silyah as Elijah simply nodded.

"I will make sure you'll know when we'll be done with the mission and I'll send you Silyah's food preferences before we leave," said the boy. After brief salutations, he ended the call and got up.

"So now we wait?" asked Silyah, getting to her feet as well.

"So now we wait," replied the boy.

Elijah and Silyah barely had the time to make it to the living room that the doorbell of the Fowl residence began to ring.

"Guess who's home!" said a feminine voice through the intercom that linked the gate of the house to the living room, as well as various other places within the habitation.

Although it could have been a trick of the light, Elijah's face lit up for a short second as he got up from the couch to go open the front door for their guest.

"It would be really nice if you guessed fast because I forgot my keys when I left," said the voice, this time coming directly from behind the door. "It's cold out here with my luggage."

"It's not like you to complain so much," said Elijah as he opened the wooden door. "Did he give you a hard time?"

A young woman with dark blond hair stepped inside the Fowl's house, her luggage in hands. "Missed you too," she told Elijah with a grin, putting her bags beside the door, closing it behind her. "Where's the rest of the family?" she asked, taking off her taupe-colored coat and swiftly placing it in the entrance's wardrobe.

"They're somewhere around the house. Haley is working on some 'secret project,' Mother is probably upstairs and Father is handling some delicate matters for work," said Elijah monotonously and matter-of-factly.

"Oh, the usual then," replied the girl. "But tell me, is that who I think it is?" The slender woman who had just arrived in the living room eyed Silyah with a certain curiosity.

"That would depend on who you think it is, but since you can obviously and easily tell who she is, you are merely asking a rhetorical question for me to confirm your thoughts. Therefore, yes, it's her."

"Hi, I'm Silyah," the brunette introduced herself, vaguely amused by the length of Elijah's "monologue" on who she was.

"I'm Malodie Butler," smiled the other girl. "We've been trusted friends of the Fowls for multiple generations," she added, proud of her family heritage.

Elijah sat down again, removing some dark strands of hair from his face.

"Which reminds me," Malodie gave Elijah a worrying grin. "I could not have traveled in District 2 without bringing back some goodies. Supposedly, they are into masonry in that district, but who are they kidding?" The woman rummaged through her handbag, retrieving two small and slick objects. "Here are the new test cases my brother showed me. These little things are the utility knives of weapons. At the press of one button, they can turn into five different means of protection. Of course, the hand grenade setting was permanently unarmed, but I knew Haley and you would not resist examining these." She handed the boy one of the two black objects, which had a flattened egg shape.

Elijah's piercing blue eyes roamed over the device that had been handed to him by the blond girl. "I will see if I get the time…" he said, slightly displeased. He often sounded like that when the Fairies wanted him to put most of his free time aside to do something for them.

"Oh… Something must be wrong. I've never seen you in that state when presented with a new gadget to mess around with…" Malodie sat beside him.

"Kelp wants me to… Follow her around during her Victory Tour… She knows things," explained the boy with a neutral voice. "Hal will probably know everything about this _gadget_ before I even have the time to bring it downstairs."

Silyah raised her eyebrow. "You know, _she_ can hear you," she said. "And _she_ is still mildly offended about the fact that some people have trust issues about her."

"I know," Elijah gave a small snort. "And, you know how the People are, Malodie. Kelp can't handle anything on his own, yet he still takes all the credit he can take. It's unbelievable that he is still in charge of New Haven."

"He's probably scared of messing up because he still lives in Root's shadow," shrugged Malodie, referring to what she had heard from the different fairies she knew. "Also, let's face it; he's probably enjoying giving you orders because Holly ended up choosing…" The young woman stopped, giving Silyah a side glance. "Oh, time traveling is weird," she breathed, passing a hand on her forehead. Judging by her demeanor, she was most likely wondering if she had said something she shouldn't have.

"She knows the story," said Elijah. "And… Well, I know about living in someone else's shadow. Kelp isn't trying hard enough."

"Well, that's Trouble for you," she told Elijah. The blue-eyed woman then turned to Silyah. "So, you know that you actually saved the entire Fowl family? That was a very noble deed, if you ask me. I saw your Games and let me tell you, I've never been on the edge of my seat quite as much in my entire seventeen years of life. Although, I have to admit that I knew everything was going to end well. After all, I've been with the Fowls twins since their birth."

"To quote you, time traveling is weird," acknowledged Silyah, now 100% certain that her involvement with Artemis's rescue might have affected her memories.

"We already went over the whole 'we were here, but we weren't' deal with her," murmured Elijah, appearing more tired and grumpy than usual to Malodie, whom he had grown up with.

"Well then, I'll go see where your sister's at," Malodie got up, slightly worried about Elijah's behavior. _He's just being a teenager,_ shrugged the 17 year-old. _He's probably in that phase,_ she figured.

"Please do so. I am sure that Haley will be delighted to have you back in the house."

"Why of course! What would a Fowl be without his or her partner in crime?" grinned Malodie.

"Even more of a catastrophe," remarked Elijah.

"Run while you still can," laughed the girl, disappearing in the stairway leading downstairs. "It's nice to meet you Silyah!" she added, speaking loud enough for her to hear.

Elijah sighed, shaking his head. "Combined with my sister, Malodie is probably my personal Effie Trinket… Can't believe I grew up with them around." At least the Butler girl's brother had also been there for a while before he had to move to District 2.

"If that is your Effie Trinket, you haven't seen a thing yet."

"I can't wait for the Tour…" said Elijah with unmasked sarcasm.

"Neither can I," replied Silyah deliberately slowly. "Can't wait to tell everyone how amazing I was when I contributed to the murder of their people."

"Don't worry; we'll incorporate that as a subliminal message in your speeches."

Silyah gave the boy a small smirk. "Love me or die, people of Panem!" she said in a hushed voice, waving her fingers about.

"Good slogan, let's go for it."

"The sad part is that it's actually pretty close to what Snow is preaching."

"On second thought, maybe you should stick to the cards Effie will most likely have prepared for you, try to be as obedient as possible and just hope everything will be over quickly."

"Oh, speaking of being prepared and efficient, I was wondering if you'd prefer to stay at my place for the night before our departure. It would ensure that we'd both be ready to go when my team arrives. I have three guest rooms I never even stepped in, plus I still have a considerable amount of food to finish off before leaving…"

"That… That's a kind offer and it would make it easier for us to be ready at the same time," nodded the raven-haired boy.

"Great. I'll expect you on Sunday evening." Silyah sank in the couch dark leather couch. In a way, she was a bit anxious for the tour. Truth be told, she mostly wanted it to be over as soon as possible in order to finally be able to meet the fairies of 13 and convince them once and for all that she could keep their precious secrets.

A tiny noise suddenly rang in the air. "That must be Kelp's directives," presumed Elijah, fetching his fairy communicator. The boy's thoughts were quickly confirmed. "Time to get to work," he told Silyah.

_One last mission and you might be able to get out of this time traveling mess without exposing Artemis and the People,_ thought Silyah. Hopefully, their well-weaved web of lies would provide her with enough alibis to get Snow's attention away from Artemis's fake death.

* * *

><p><strong>We would like to wish a Happy New Year to all of our readers! May your 2015 be ever in your favor!<strong>


	5. Chapter Four, Stay Smart

_**Chapter Four, Stay Smart**_

_The doors of the train slid open before Silyah, who was officially two steps away from her Victory Tour. Taking one last glance towards the swarm of people awaiting her departure, she took those two steps, her hands sliding along the railings of the stairs leading inside the vehicle. Shortly after having walked on board, her team made its appearance behind her. The girl was about to inquire about Elijah's whereabouts when she saw something that rendered her speechless. Unable to utter a single sound, and not even able to bat an eyelash, the blue-eyed girl could do nothing but stare at the source of her astonishment._

_ "Do you mind if I ask you why you look so surprised, Miss Natho?"_

_ Still in disbelief, the girl was only able to pronounce a single word: "Artemis?"_

_ The raven-haired teenager looked down at himself, as if to tell her that she didn't need to point out the obvious; he already knew who he was._

_ "What are you doing here?" asked the pale girl. Even her voice had been unsure of which emotions it should have conveyed._

_ "Technically speaking, I survived the Games too, Silyah. I am as much of a victor as you are. It would only be fair for me to go on this tour with you," replied the boy, his good old smirk stretching one corner of his lips. He walked up to the girl. "Aren't you pleased to see me? I have come a long way to see you again."_

_ Silyah couldn't help but smile despite the loud alarm bells ringing in her mind. "Well, I am happy to see you all in one piece," she grinned. "Mind you, you're in a much better shape than you were six months ago." _

_ Artemis adjusted his crimson tie. "Thanks to your help." The boy's eyes then locked on the golden aremèsia hanging from Silyah's neck and his smirk morphed into one of his rare sincere smile. "I am delighted to see that you haven't tossed that memory away. Since I never heard from you again, I thought that you might have forgotten about me," he said softly, leading the brunette away from the train's doors to go take a seat._

_ Silyah felt slightly uneasy. "I wish there would have been a way for me to talk to you…" Abruptly, she stopped walking. Something was wrong. Horribly wrong._

_ "There is a –" Artemis's sentence was cut short and Silyah's heart skipped a beat._

_ The Hunger Games victor looked around the room, alarmed by the sudden cannon-like noise she had heard. Unfortunately, she didn't get the opportunity to look for very long, for her ears caught a scream of agony._

_ Within less than a second, Silyah saw Artemis drop to the ground, but he wasn't the only one to do so. Across the room, another dark-haired figure had fallen, his left hand wrapped around a dull silver firearm._

_ Silyah turned her head as blood began to tint the floor underneath Artemis, unable to watch such a thing happen once again. It was then that she saw that there were four people in the room rather than three. Paralyzed by fear, she watched this fourth man pick up the revolver from the mysterious figure's limp hand, leaving a white rose in its place._

_ "Did you ever think you would get away this easily, Miss Natho?" Although his voice was soft, it chilled the girl to the bones._

_ President Snow was staring at her, somehow looking pleased and disappointed at the same time. Swiftly, he fired another bullet in Artemis's direction. This time, Silyah could not muffle a scream of her own. Seeing how much it affected the girl, Snow fired again, and again._

_ "Stop it!" Silyah screamed as if it would make any difference. Of course, her request was completely ignored. "Stop shooting him!" The young woman couldn't prevent her voice from cracking as she tried to yell over the gunshots. "Please stop! He's already dead!" she shrieked. "He's already dead! He's been dead for a century! Stop it!"_

_ The President of Panem glanced down at the boy. Silyah barely had the time to react before she saw the man's arm move, now aiming the gun towards her chest. All she heard was one final cannon sound._

* * *

><p>Silyah's eyes brusquely shot open, as they did every time she woke up after her endless nightmares. Shrugging away the terror was now a part of her daily routine.<p>

"This is completely ridiculous," she rationalized, murmuring the words to herself. Every concern she and the People might have had about protecting their secrets, as well as Artemis's "death," had been taken care of during the past few days. There was no way Snow could ever discover the truth about Artemis.

The girl sat up in her bed, taking a few deep breaths to calm down. It was during one of those breaths that her nose caught something in the air. Was that bacon? Albeit still being slightly shaken from her latest dream, her curiosity sparked up. She attempted to put a bit of order in her hip-long braided hair, then followed the smell into the kitchen where, to her brief surprise, she found Elijah behind the stove.

The raven-haired boy turned as he noticed the brunette.

"Breakfast?" wondered Silyah, slightly confused and perhaps still a bit asleep.

"Mhm," nodded the boy.

The girl opened the fridge to pour herself a glass of orange juice, glancing over Elijah's shoulder in the process. "You can cook?" The girl felt something she hadn't felt in a while: amusement.

"Yes, actually, I can. You seem amused."

"Oh, it's just that I didn't expect that." She walked over to the counter, taking a seat on one of her stools. "Don't get me used to this," she added with the slightest of grins.

"Never. Being your _guard dog _is quite enough; I do not desire to be your maid as well, Silyah," the boy assured her. "It's just a habit. I always make breakfast for my lab rat of a sister."

"Now that's more like it," mumbled Silyah under her breath.

"She'd starve working if it weren't for me," mentioned the boy with a slight smirk. "Sadly, her way of thanking me is by teasing me."

"That's what siblings are for," sighed Silyah, still eyeing the cooking pan between the boy's hands.

"I can assure you that it won't burst into flames if you stop staring at it, Silyah."

"Sorry, I'm just really surprised. I couldn't cook to save my life… Well, I did do it to save my life with… Well, in the arena."

"I know… You could learn a thing or two from my mother."

"Oh, that's right," the girl briefly recalled her mentioning that she was a cook who provided meals to the District 3 workers. "After the tour, perhaps…" It could eventually be useful.

"You'll need some normal hobbies after all," said the boy as he placed a plate of freshly prepared eggs before the girl.

"Thank you." Silyah grabbed a fork and considered the plate in front of her. "I don't think cooking will ever be a hobby of mine though." She forced herself to take a bite, not having the heart to tell Elijah that she was rarely hungry just after waking up.

"Well, perhaps not, but it could at least help you get back to a more normal life."

"Yeah…" She loaded her fork with a bit of egg. "This is really good by the way. You didn't have to do that."

"You're welcome."

The girl almost apologized for having judged Elijah negatively on the day they had met; but instead, she looked back down towards the plate the painfully familiar-looking boy had given her.

"Are you mentally ready to meet Effie?" asked the brunette, making small talk to suppress her growing stress.

"As ready as I can be."

"You better be. She loves gossip, and you'll probably have to ease her curiosity on numerous occasions." Silyah furrowed her brows lightly, remembering that time when she had caught the woman crying in her bedroom. She shook her head. She'd get to the bottom of this mystery one day, but now was certainly not the time.

"I'll do my best," replied Elijah.

Silyah eyed the boy once more, realizing that he was fully dressed up and ready for action. "At what time did you wake up?" She glanced at her nightwear and ran a hand through the top of her braided hair.

"Roughly three hours ago."

"Oh dear," Silyah could not understand morning people.

"One would think you'd be used to getting up early."

"Why would that be?" The girl let out a dry chuckle. "I'll let you in on a little secret of mine: my average wake up time is noon." It was mostly because her nightmares were exhausting her, yet keeping her up most of the night, but the girl left that part out. Seeing that Elijah looked relatively surprised and intrigued, Silyah explained herself. "It's not like I have much to do. I'm not required to go to school, and I am really not ready to face the people I used to know. I can work on my own projects any time I want and I'm basically supplied with my every needs. My only obligation as of lately was to call Kelp with you on Fridays."

"Don't you have your garden?"

"Do I look like an outdoor person to you?" She raised an eyebrow. "There is a program taking care of my garden for me. I only take care of the settings. Keeping things alive is too much for me to handle…" The girl swallowed the knot in her throat. Elijah's empathetic gaze didn't help her uneasy feeling. "Which reminds me, I have to go check on those settings before leaving…" She grabbed her plate, which had almost been completely emptied, and placed it in the dishwasher, telling Elijah to do the same when he would be done. "I'll be back shortly," she told the nodding boy, heading towards her bedroom to get dressed.

* * *

><p><em><strong>A few streets away from the Victors' Village<strong>_

President Coriolanus Snow briefly glanced over the schedule in his assistant's gloved hands, displeased to see that they were two minutes late in their daily plan.

"Shall I ask the driver to go faster?" offered the woman. She barely needed to look at Snow to know his answer. The advisor thus lowered the screen that separated the presidential vehicle's passengers from the driver and told him to "quit the District visit and get to the Victors' Village." When she turned her attention back to the President, he was in mid-conversation with his escort, who also doubled up as his bodyguard.

"Of course she'll be punished," had stated Snow in a dry, yet calm tone. "When the time is right."

"When the time is right, Sir?" The advisor, catching up on the discussion, raised an unconvinced eyebrow.

"Miss Natho is being cooperative for now. In addition, ask yourselves, how can we possibly punish her? We can't kill her, her _lover_ is dead and she cares so little about her family that she asked to be moved to the Victors' Village without them. With a bit of time, one of her weak spots will shine, believe me." There was a strange glint in the President's eyes, which seemed dark yet oddly aglow. "My visit today will be a mere warning shot. A storm is coming, and trust me, the ice walls she built around herself will shatter." The man sent a withering glare to his advisor and she clearly understood that he had a plan in mind.

After a few more minutes on the road, the dark car pulled over in the village and parked in front of Silyah Natho's mansion. The President's escort got out of the vehicle, holding the door for Snow. The man ordered his advisor to stay in the car before following the escort up to the steps of the newest victor's house.

The escort, all dressed in black, knocked four times on the door.

From within the residence, Elijah turned towards the door. Silyah was busy, so he figured he might take the liberty to answer. The boy went to the entrance, opening the door for the visitors.

Two men were standing in front of him, one of whom was partially hidden. The one he could see properly had a visible foreign look on his face: surgery, without a doubt.

"May we see Miss Silyah Natho?" asked the younger one of the two; the one who was concealing the second man with his broad frame.

"I am afraid she is currently unavailable," replied Elijah politely.

"And I fear that you are dealing with a higher authority, Mr…?" the man paused, allowing Elijah to fill in the blank.

"Fowl."

"Mr. Fowl?" enquired a voice coming from behind the first man. His tone betrayed a well-calculated amount of curiosity.

Elijah instantly recognized that voice. He had heard it so many times before; every citizen of Panem had. "President Snow… I suppose victors get a visit before their tour?"

The Presidential escort was slowly pushed aside by the leader of Panem. "Indeed…" His snake-like eyes swept over the young man. "It seems this visit will be slightly more informative than how I first thought it would be… Mr. Fowl," he then said, walking into the house.

Elijah took a step back. He wasn't exactly scared of the old man, but he knew that he had the power to do things to people he cared for. "Informative? In what sense?"

Coriolanus Snow carefully observed Elijah, clearly noticing that the Fowl boy in front of him was not the one whose death had never truly been confirmed. "Don't you think I don't know about your family, young man?"

Elijah sent him back his stare with his piercing blue eyes. "Why does this matter?"

The President smiled. "Well, despite the circumstances, I owed them quite a bit," he spoke slowly. His voice was the only thing that betrayed his advanced age, as the rest had all been taken care of by the Capitol surgeons and doctors. "They helped stopping an uprising during the 74th Victory Tour…"

"That's true. My father was there," nodded the boy. "However, unless you fear that another one is coming, I don't see how that information is relevant."

"It could become relevant… After the show your little _friend_ gave during the last day of the Games, or rather, the lack of show, some repercussions are to be expected... Tell me, what's your name, boy?"

"Elijah." The teenager looked at the white-haired man, not wanting to trust him, but compelled to do so. "And if I may mention, there is hardly anything to worry about. My half-brother is dead; end of story."

"This story is unfortunately far more complex," commented Snow as he began to pace through the hall. "Surely, you were disappointed by the fact that we were unable to bring Artemis's remains back in his district. Also, a few people were perturbed when they realized that the last minutes of the Games had never been televised."

Elijah looked down, but smirked slightly. "We actually never met… But haven't your _bright_ Capitol scientists and technicians figured anything out?" he questioned, trying his hardest to hide a mocking tone.

"Interested in what we could have found?" asked Snow, sending chills down Elijah's back even with his softest voice.

"It has to do with my family; of course I'd be interested."

Snow's usually emotionless features turned into a small grin. "We haven't found a thing," he admitted. "Absolutely nothing."

"Maybe you didn't look hard enough," shrugged Elijah. "Or perhaps what caused Artemis's death was something that destroyed all evidences and created a glitch with the cameras. My half-brother was clever, after all."

"And are you as clever as him?" asked Snow, raising an eyebrow.

* * *

><p>Silyah was almost done double checking the settings of the heating system that kept her garden in a constant summer-like state when she heard muffled voices, most likely coming from the hall of her house.<p>

"Elijah?" she screamed, trying to get her voice to reach the front of her house. "Are you speaking to someone?" She wondered if her team had arrived early.

She took a peek through her glass back door, seeing that there was some movement in her front hall. Although she was intrigued, the girl went back to her verifications. She had to make sure that she wouldn't come back from the tour only to find out that her entire garden had frozen over and died. Even if Silyah was far from having a green thumb and usually despised the outdoors, her garden had the ability to soothe her and she didn't want to give it up just yet.

As she was closing the control-panel of the heating system, a sudden sound startled the girl.

"Miss Natho, I will have to ask you to follow me, please," said the deep voice that nearly made Silyah's heart jump out of her chest.

The young woman spun around, landing face-to-face with a tall man with relatively broad shoulders. "Excuse me?" she uttered, confused.

"You have a visitor." The man dressed in black held Silyah's backyard door open, motioning for her to get in.

Suddenly feeling a bit shaky, Silyah took careful steps towards the man, immediately knowing that he was from the Capitol. Once she got in the house, he lightly pushed her towards her office, which made her narrow her eyes at him.

"If you excuse me, sir, this is _my house_ and I don't tolerate snow-covered boots on my floor," she said, being surprisingly authoritarian and unsure of if she should feel guilty about it. She took all the time she needed to remove her coat and footwear and even took the liberty to see if Elijah was still in the hall, which he was.

"I'll go wait in the living room," he mouthed from across the hall, looking paler than usual.

Silyah nodded, relieved to see that nothing had happened to the boy, but still extremely worried about what was awaiting her inside the office. Her dream was at the back of her mind, making her tremble.

The man from the Capitol cleared his throat, which earned him another look from Silyah, but had the sufficient power to lead her into the study.

Taking a deep breath, the teenager walked into the room and finally met her visitor's eyes. Of course, she had anticipated that President Snow would be the one waiting for her. The mixed smells of blood and roses had been a dead giveaway.

"Good morning," she said, almost amazed by her dry and controlled voice.

"Greetings Miss Natho," replied Snow, who was seated behind the girl's desk. "Please take a seat," he ordered. "How are you enjoying your new residence?" he then asked her as she dragged a chair towards the desk.

"It's nice," answered Silyah, seeing no point in pretending to have an attitude. "A bit big for one person, but that doesn't matter much, does it?" The brunette felt like hitting herself with the chair she was sitting on. What an inappropriate time for her sarcastic sense of humor to make one of its rare guest appearance; she was probably about to pay the price of all her little lies and secrets considering that the President of Panem was currently in front of her.

The man in question twisted his face in what seemed like a small smile, which looked incredibly odd given his surgically "improved" features. "It's a shame your Ice Prince can't help you fill a few rooms," he commented.

The girl ignored the inappropriate comment as she remembered her latest nightmare in great details. She was truly beginning to feel paranoid. What if the President had come to have her killed in order to muffle rumors? What if he knew about Artemis's secret?

"No need to be so nervous, I am simply here to ask you a few questions…" The man paused, his casual air hiding a certain menace. "To spare us some time, how about we both agree not to lie to each other?"

Silyah froze for a split second. "I…" She coughed, her voice unfortunately choosing to leave her on her own.

The President observed her for a moment before taking back the speech. "While I may not be the most _caring_ person in this country, I can assure you that I am always honest," he told her.

Glad that he had mistaken her silence for surprise, Silyah cleared her throat. "I do think it would be a smart choice to remain honest…"

"I have a feeling there are certain conditions in that sentence…"

"Well," the girl tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "If we must be honest with each other, I have to tell you that while I will try my best to answer your questions, there are certain things I won't be able to explain and I really don't want this to be a problem."

Snow nodded. "Naturally…" The man noticed a slight panic in Silyah's eyes. "Fear not, I won't request any explanation in the next few minutes. For now, I want you to tell me: what are your plans for the tour?"

"I don't plan on making any shocking reveal anytime soon if that's what you want to know," stated the girl. "I will attend the tour and do as I'm told, nothing more."

"What about the boy we graciously allowed you to bring along?"

"He won't cause any issues. He plans on staying backstage through the entire tour. He'll only be there to help me by psychologically apt to face big crowds."

The President raised an eyebrow.

"I live alone for a reason," clarified Silyah, directing a subtle blame towards her interlocutor.

"How preventive of you," commented the frail white-haired man.

"Please understand that the only thing I wish is for this tour to go smoothly and be over as soon as possible."

"That is a very smart wish, Miss Natho."

Silyah gave him a bittersweet smile. "I think I went through enough challenges to save my own life for me to willingly throw it away by doing something stupid, Mr. President."

The man gave her a terrifying smile. "Good to know we're on the same page on that matter…"

"Is that all?" Silyah crossed her fingers, hoping that he wouldn't have anything else to say.

"Not quite, Miss Natho," Snow leaned towards the victor. "I told you that you wouldn't have to provide me with an explanation for what happened in the Games just yet – and I won't go back on this statement, but mark my words: you will have to do so in given time. The people of Panem have the most unpleasant theories and it would be in your greatest interest to prove them wrong." He let that information sink in. "Here is the deal: you will have until the end of the 81st Hunger Games to give me a clear and complete retelling of how Artemis Fowl died. Everything you will tell me will be broadcasted before the new victor's interview, so you better make it convincing. In the meantime, if I see that you are involved in anything I deem rebellious, or if you can't provide Panem with answers, I will expose the fact that you got out of the Games without a single wound, which I presume you would like to keep to yourself. Then, I will personally make sure that you will talk."

Silyah nodded quickly, gripping the edges of her chair to prevent her hands from shaking.

"Surely, you are familiar with Finnick Odair's business in the Capitol?"

Silyah felt her heart drop down into her stomach. "You can't be serious."

"Remember what I said about honesty?" calmly stated the President. "You're the only one who has the power to inflict this upon yourself." The man got up from the chair. "One last thing before I go… While I do not need to get into the details, I judge that enough time has passed since your return to District 3 and I do believe that at this point, I should have at least a vague idea about what killed Artemis Fowl. I only want a simple answer; it will remain between you and me."

Since she was seated, the girl felt extremely intimidated by Snow's gaze. She felt as if her heart was about to explode. Explode! What that even believable? "An explosion," blurted out the girl without giving much of a second thought about her answer.

Snow gave a small grunt. He was not satisfied, that much was clear… On the other hand, he had obtained two words from the girl and that was two words more than what he had started out with.

"Once again, it was very smart of you to reply." He presented the girl with the white rose he wore on his lapel as she got to her feet. "For you," he told her. "You should also take this last advice: _stay smart_, Miss Natho."

Silyah took the flower delicately, as though grabbing it more firmly would activate some sort of weapon. "I will."

Snow gave her a smile a parent would give a disobedient child and smoothed out his coat. He outstretched his hand towards the arch that lead out of the study, motioning for Silyah to go out before him. Straightening her shoulders, the teenager obliged, leading the President back to the front door.

"I shall see you again in the Capitol, Miss Natho," said Snow as he retrieved a pair of leather gloves from his pocket and put them on. His stern tone echoed of a threat, which was not exactly surprising. "And so will we, Elijah…" he then murmured as he saw the boy getting out of the living room, which was just beside the front door. With no further salutations, Snow and his escort took their leave from Silyah's house, leaving behind the lingering smell of white roses and blood as a reminder of what was now at stake.

The two pale teenagers started at the door in silence. The strange feeling of being watched loomed over Silyah, but the girl figured that it was probably caused by the fact that Elijah was with her.

"You know," began the girl, "as much as I try to convince myself that I'm not scared of Snow, I'll have to admit that I'm actually terrified of that tyrant." She said the word "tyrant" as quietly as possible, as if the man it described might be listening.

Needless to say, Elijah seemed to agree with the girl. "What did he say to you?"

Silyah turned to him. "He talked about the last minutes of the Games… He told me that if I did not provide him with a decent explanation and proofs of what happened, he would, amongst other things, expose the fact that I got out of the arena unharmed, which could both anger the People and Panem. No need to be a genius to figure out this could end for me…" As she replayed her most recent conversation in her head, she let go of a low gasp. "Under the pressure, I told him that Artemis's passing had to do with an explosion," she breathed. The girl felt like slamming her head into the wall, but then, she saw Elijah smile.

"Did you? That is… Creative. We can definitely work with that." As the spark of an idea lit up in his brain, hope blossomed in Elijah's mind. With enough research, they could give Snow what he wanted without giving him anything at all.

"I am glad you think so," she gave him an uncertain smile. This case was far from closed, but for now there were other things to take care of.

* * *

><p>By the time the doorbell rang, Silyah had managed to put a bit of order in her house with Elijah's help. The whole place was now presentable and looked rather warm and cozy despite its humongous size. This time, it was Silyah who got to the door first to greet the Capitol citizens behind it.<p>

"There she is!" exclaimed Effie, barely even in the house yet, but still quite visible with her white and pale blue wig, which matched the accents on her gray dress.

Although it was only there for a fraction of a second, a genuine smile graced Silyah's lips. "I've been here for the last six months," she remarked, poking fun at Effie's greeting.

"Still as witty as ever, aren't you?" Effie's singsong voice filled the hall, just like the sound of heels that accompanied her everywhere she went. The woman walked up to Silyah and kissed her on both cheeks.

"So, where's the prep team?" wondered Silyah once the salutations were over.

"Prep _teams_, darling. They'll be here very shortly; they are picking up their –" Effie's eyes suddenly fell on a dark-haired teenager, making her do a double take. At first, the woman thought she had seen a ghost, but at second glance, it was clear that this teenager was a new acquaintance. "Now, tell me, who is this handsome young man?" she asked, as if she was implying something. It was as though she wanted to be the first one to be made aware of an exclusive news.

"Oh, erm, this is Elijah Fowl. He's Artemis's half-brother. He was one of the first people to visit me after the Games," explained Silyah, running a hand through a strand of her hair.

The boy slightly bowed his head. "I'm the one who will accompany her during the tour."

"It's lovely to meet you," Effie walked over to him, greeting him like she had greeted the Hunger Games victor.

At this moment, a swarm of people entered the house and Silyah finally understood what Effie had meant by _prep teams_.

"Clockwork Angel! How I missed you!" cried Xarone with excitement. "I can't wait to show you what we have in store for you! You're going to love it!" He grinned, nearly clapping. He then observed the girl carefully. "Hmm, not so bad… We'll be able to work with that," he said, giving her a wink as the members of the small army each took their turn at kissing Silyah's cheeks.

When it was his turn to be introduced, Elijah almost wished he could have turned invisible, but sadly, that was not one of the abilities he possessed.

"The resemblance is shocking," murmured a woman with brown and black braided hair, which almost reached her knees; both she and the yellow-haired man beside her contemplated Elijah.

"If I may intervene, we're going to run late if we don't get started right away. I suggest you both hurry up and take a bath so the stylists may get to work as soon as possible," said Effie, eyeing the watch on Xarone's arm.

"Both?" repeated Elijah. "You have been informed that I will never be seen on camera, right?"

"Of course, but if you have to take part in this tour, you'll have to be dressed accordingly," explained Xarone as though it was an obvious fact. "Izolt, Throika and Marshia will get you ready and Ilranor will dress you up."

Elijah sent an alarmed gaze in Silyah's direction, but it was too late for the two teenagers who were both whisked away in different bathrooms; Ilranor's team invading the one on the first floor as Xarone's dragged Silyah to the one beside her bedroom on the second floor.

After some time spent in the skilled hands of her prep team and stylist, Silyah emerged from her room, dressed in a black jacket with sharp lines worn over a simple dark tank top and high-waisted pants of the same shade. Rather than being shoved into torture instruments, her feet had been dressed up in chunky casual-looking heels, which were comfortable enough. As far as accessories went, Xarone had insisted on making the girl wear her gold aremèsia pendant under her jacket and the silver bracelet that had been her token in the arena around her wrist.

Once she got to the kitchen, she met up with a fresh and dashing, yet perhaps still slightly traumatized Elijah, who was making small talk with Effie. The woman sporting a pale blue lipstick turned to Silyah as soon as she noticed her.

"Oh! Isn't she beautiful? Dark makeup really accentuates your pretty blue eyes!" she smiled enthusiastically as she glanced back towards Elijah, who nodded absent-mindedly. She looked back towards Silyah, collecting herself to go back to business. "The camera crew just came back from interviewing your family and they started filming some of your artwork since we were starting to have a tight schedule. As soon as they'll be done with that, you'll have to go with them to say a few words on camera."

As if on cue, someone arrived in the kitchen to request Silyah's presence in her small art studio so that they could film her while she talked about her talent; something which was mandatory for every victor.

Since they weren't required to work or go to school, the winners of the Hunger Games all required an activity to both occupy their time and entertain the Capitol audience. For Silyah, finding a something of the sort had not been too difficult. Even before the Games, she had been interested in multiple art-related fields, such as drawing, writing and sewing. With her newly acquired fortune, she had been able to get a decent camera and multiple computers to try her hand at photography and image editing, which she relatively enjoyed. The girl had not worked on many projects since her return from the Capitol, but with what she had already done, she had a sufficient number of creations to show off to the world.

In a little more than an hour, the Hunger Games victor had wrapped every scene that had to be shot indoors, in addition to having recorded some voice-over that would eventually be used in the final montage of the introductory Victory Tour footage. Shortly after finishing up, Silyah found herself in her hall once again, surrounded by her expanded District 3 team. Outside, the camera crew was beginning to set up their material.

As Elijah and his new prep team were being briefed on the procedure they'd have to follow to avoid appearing on camera, Xarone was dressing Silyah up, adding a black wool cowl, delicate laser-cut leather gloves and stiletto winter boots to her current outfit.

"Places everyone! We'll be going live soon! This will be the first outdoor shot and it will consist of our departure for the train station!" beamed Effie's voice as she caught sight of the time, startling Silyah, whom she was turning to. "Now, dear, everyone will be watching, so smile and be graceful!"

"Graceful? With those boots the best I can do is look 50% steady. Not to mention that there will be snowy stairs involved."

Elijah suppressed a chuckle. That girl was unbelievable; her greatest fears seemed to range from being killed to walking down a set of five stairs… Perhaps snow was the thing that linked the two scenarios.

"Hey, you! No laughing," Silyah shot him a deadly glare and the boy took half a step back. He raised his palms in front of him, but his smug grin was still plastered on his subtly made-up face. "I'd like to see you walk with heels that high."

From behind Silyah, Effie cleared her throat. "Remember, big smile!" You're going on an exciting trip after all!" The brunette barely had the time to put on a fake grin that Effie was shoving her right out of the door. "Just take it one step at the time!" she told the girl as she threw her out.

For a fragment of a second, Silyah was taken aback by Effie's advice. Yes, to be able to get through this trip, she would have to stay smart and take everything one step at the time.


	6. Chapter Five, Hiding in Plain Sight

_**Chapter Five, Hiding in Plain Sight**_

Although she had promised herself to take things slowly, it had been difficult for Silyah not to get caught in the whirlwind of the Tour once she boarded the train. From the moment Beetee had joined the group at the station, the hours began to race to the end of the day. Almost too soon, Silyah found herself being woken up from yet another nightmare by none other than Effie Trinket. The woman handed her over to her stylist and prep-team, who desperately needed to finish preparing their "canvas" before dressing her up later that day.

A small breakfast later, Silyah was entrusted with the mission of waking up her guest, as Ms. Trinket could not do so herself due to a manicure emergency. The brunette thus made her way into Elijah's room, ready to wake him up with a witty remark.

"You're not a very good watchdog, are you? I've been roaming about for the past few hours. All on my own." She grabbed a pillow from the chair beside the bed and threw it at the half-awake boy.

He gave a groan and poked his head from under the covers, his straight black hair forming a cloud around his head. "You're old enough to know not to take candy from strangers, Silyah."

"You never know what I could have said while getting my legs waxed," she snorted. She walked over to the window, drawing the thick curtains wide open. "I'm starting to think that you had other motives than your job when you agreed to come on this tour."

Elijah ran a hand through his raven locks. "Your lack of trust in me is cutting me deeply. What other motives could I possibly have?"

"Oh, look at you, starting to understand how I feel," murmured Silyah before clearing her throat. "I haven't thought about your reasons, but perhaps you were trying to enjoy the comfort of this train for free without having to go to the Games?"

The slightly drowsy boy sighed. "I actually like it at home, believe it or not. I am only here because of my orders."

"In this case, pardon my language, but get the Frond up. We're going to the spa. Effie's orders. She might not be Kelp, but she must be obeyed."

"Spa? Are you serious?" This did sound like a task Effie Trinket could give them.

"You were lucky to be invited. We'll be getting full treatments."

Elijah furrowed his brows. "Oh, yeah… Lucky me."

"Come on, up you go."

"Right. Fine." The boy sat up, the soft, white bed sheet covering him falling from his bare shoulders.

"Oh. Right. I'm sorry," quickly said Silyah, catching a glimpse of Elijah's pale skin. She awkwardly diverted her gaze away from him. "Should have given you some privacy. I forgot that boundaries were a thing since my prep team got hold of me." She took a few steps back towards the door.

"Right," he repeated. "I'll be ready in a moment."

"I'll wait for you at the end of the wagon."

On these words, Silyah quickly disappeared, closing the door behind her.

A few minutes later, Elijah arrived at the meeting point, his black hair still slightly messy, as he had not really bothered to make it look decent.

"Good morning again." Silyah was still avoiding his gaze.

"Good morning," the boy greeted her back, attempting to fix his hair by running his left hand through it.

"Enjoying your job so far?" inquired the young woman, grabbing a muffin on a passing breakfast cart to then throw it into Elijah's hands.

The raven-haired teen caught it, smiling slightly behind Silyah's back, as she was now walking in front of him. Choosing to ignore her question as he trailed behind her brown waves of hair, Elijah decided to ask her one of his own. "Has your hair gotten longer since we met? It looks longer."

Silyah looked down to her locks. "Probably." It had grown so long that only the bottom of it still naturally curled in ringlets that went past the bottom of her back. The rest of the texture was coming from the braid she had worn while sleeping. "I actually think that there is an unwritten law about my hair around here: no cutting except when the ends need a trim," she mentioned, realizing that she was now discussing hairdos with a guy.

"It's almost part of your trademark," Elijah pointed out. "I noticed that one of the women in your prep team – the one with the white hair – tried to mimic your style."

"Here's a well-kept secret: she's wearing extensions." Silyah almost smirked, but her heart was not quite into it.

"Well of course. She is from the Capitol; everything is fake there."

"The muffins are quite real." There it was; a tiny, minuscule grin tickling the corners of Silyah's mouth. "Quite good too. Convinced me not to skip my breakfast this morning."

"Fine then, nothing is real except for the muffins and –" Elijah took a bite out of the one she had given him. "You're right. They are rather good."

Silyah slowed down and let him finish the pastry before opening the door of the spa wagon. "Let's see what this is all about. We didn't have access to this part of the train the first time around."

Elijah nodded absent-mindedly, following her inside.

"Welcome, Ms. Natho," said a feminine digital voice as the victor reached a facial recognition device. "Welcome Mr… Welcome Ms… Welcome…" The machine gave a strange beeping noise, as though it was feeling physical pain. "Welcome, Guest. You are not in the system's database. Please state your name."

"Elijah Fowl," clearly enunciated the boy.

"Welcome, Mr. Fowl." The system beeped some more for about thirty seconds before finally getting back into operation. "Please follow the glowing path. It will lead you into the dressing rooms. Enjoy your experience with Capitol Spa."

For someone who was used to technology and robots, Silyah was taken aback by this glitch-filled digital greeting. _Who coded her?_ she wondered.

"Do you think we should report that little bug?" asked Elijah with a light frown. Had he just seen… No, surely not…

"Maybe… Hopefully they won't ask us to fix it." The girl shook her head. "Let's follow the blue glowing road, shall we?"

"That's why we're here, is it not?"

"Asking rhetorical questions is my job, Fowl." Another microscopic smile might have escaped Silyah's ice mask as she proceeded to lead the way towards the changing rooms.

"I've started to realize that."

The two teenagers quickly reached the changing station, in which were a few stalls. On two of the stalls' doors were pictures of them to indicate which stall had been assigned to whom. While Silyah's portrait was her default victory picture, Elijah's was a shot that had been taken mere minutes ago.

"Wow. You've been added to the database." Silyah raised her eyebrows.

"Oh. Once again, lucky me," muttered the boy.

The picture, which Elijah had clearly not been prepared for, portrayed him with a look of mild confusion.

"You'd think they could afford better cameras," observed Silyah before going into her booth to change into a light, spa-appropriate attire and a plush bathrobe.

After doing her hair up into a quick bun, Silyah got out of her stall, meeting up with a similarly-dressed Elijah. The girl had expected the digital entity to tell them where to go next, but was rather surprised to see an Avox on the other side of the changing area.

Elijah frowned, not used to this type of lifestyle, but he nevertheless followed the woman who led them to where were waiting two massage tables folded into lounge chairs and four people who seemed to be preparing some oils.

The quiet servant nodded at the teenagers, soundlessly telling them to go take a seat.

Elijah settled in a chair, eyeing Silyah out of the corner of his eye. The young woman was sitting down as well, and had let the two spa employees take her arms and feet.

The raven-haired boy tensed up when the Capitol woman placed her hands on him. He thought he had gotten over that little physical contact issue, but clearly he hadn't.

"This is a place of relaxation, not tension," the massage therapist pointed out, giving him a look.

Elijah fought the urge to roll his eyes. "Yes, of course. Sorry."

On the other chair, Silyah didn't seem bothered at all. She was no stranger to Capitol treatments after all.

The Fowl boy closed his eyes, he tried to control his shaky breathing by inhaling and exhaling and attempted to let himself relax by thinking of something, or someone else.

He had expected Silyah to conduct small talk every now and then during the treatment, but surprisingly enough, silence reigned in the spa wagon for the complete duration of their time there; a factor that made Elijah even more uneasy. Perhaps the girl wasn't used to company when being in the hands of the Capitol workers, or maybe she simply didn't have anything to say.

Once the massage therapist finally freed him from the countless different massages and facials, Elijah ran a hand on his cheek, feeling his smooth, newly exfoliated skin. "And there went my chances of ever getting facial hair," he murmured, getting up from the chair.

Silyah turned towards him, clearly not expecting such a comment to come from the boy. "Wait, what?" she inadvertently let go of a single chuckle as she tightened the belt on her robe and got up, already heading back to the changing rooms.

"Haley constantly teases me about how I'll never have any facial hair. I think I might have to accept defeat eventually."

Now that he mentioned it, the victor tried to picture the boy with a beard and gave him a strange face. "To be honest, I don't know how that would look with your jaw line."

Elijah was trying to figure out how he could possibly interpret and reply to this statement when the arrival of an Avox stopped his train of thoughts. The same woman who had led them to the massage area dropped something that had fallen from Elijah's robe into his hand, before quietly slipping away.

Shrugging away any kind of remark about his jaw, the dark-haired teenager turned back to where Silyah once stood, only to realize that the girl was gone.

It was not too long after that he heard her shriek.

* * *

><p>Eager to go change back into her own clothes, Silyah had quickly made her way to the changing rooms, figuring that Elijah would easily get back to the stalls on his own. With no one yet in sight, the fair-skinned girl took the liberty of removing her robe as she went over to her stall.<p>

Unexpectedly, her survival instinct sparked up; her heart nearly shooting out of her chest. For a split second, the girl wondered how she could have possibly bumped into thin air, but then, panic attacked her once more. A scream of surprise and fright escaped her throat as a figure materialized before her.

"Shhhh!" hushed the petite silhouette with jet-black hair. "Shhhh! It's just me! Haley!" she said in a low and rapid voice.

Silyah fell quiet, not because she had been told to stop screaming, but rather because she was now breathing hard, trying to see if she still had a pulse after this terrifying moment. "D'Arvit!" she managed to utter, almost choking on the word.

"I am so sorry! I would have gotten out of the way, but I didn't see you approaching since I immediately turned around when I saw that you were taking off your robe. So, so sorry!" frantically whispered Haley.

"Silyah?" Elijah's concerned voice came from the other side of the door. "Are you alright? I heard you scream."

The young woman barely had the time to wrap her robe around herself like a bath towel that Elijah was already in the room to check on her. It didn't take him too long to notice that Silyah was not the room's only occupant.

"Care to explain what's going on here?"

Not losing a beat, Silyah hopped over to Elijah, grabbing both him and his sister by the collar. "You two, get in here," she ordered, dragging them in her changing stall and quickly locking its door. "Explanation. Now." It went without saying that she was still shaken.

"Mom made me do it," said Haley Fowl, a tad sheepishly.

Elijah groaned. "She sent you to look out for me?"

"Don't take it personally. She just didn't want you to get in trouble and she told me that she'd feel safer if you had a backup if need there be."

Silyah's gaze traveled from one twin to the other, still trying to calm down.

"And she entrusted you with that task?" asked Elijah, his voice filled with doubt.

"Well, there is no debate on the fact that I am the most discreet person she could have asked."

"You don't say." The Hunger Games victor sighed.

"And somehow you manage to bump into people. I am guessing that it is why Silyah turned into an alarm earlier."

"You bet," replied the brunette, holding on to her robe with an iron fist.

"In all fairness, _she_ bumped into me," mentioned Haley.

"Most people tend not to see you when you're invisible, Hal. I know it's confusing since you see them."

The boy's slightly older sister arched one of her eyebrows, resisting the urge to punch her brother. "I am not an idiot, Elijah. I turned away because she started undressing. I might be able to turn invisible, but I don't use that power in perverted ways."

Elijah sighed. "Why were you hiding in here, of all places?"

"Saving my magic. I knew I had fewer risks of being seen without my shield in a locked stall. I spent the whole night switching between wagons and being very worried about being caught."

The girl's brother pinched the top of the bridge of his nose. "You could have avoided this if we had known from the start. Why didn't you tell me?"

"You'd never have agreed. I _have_ sent you a warning text message this morning, but now I see that you don't have your communicator with you."

The boy couldn't argue with that.

"So, what do we do now?" wondered Silyah.

"I don't know about you two, but I'd sure appreciate better living conditions. You'd think it would be easy for an invisible girl to steal a meal, but believe me, it's not."

Silyah closed her eyes for a few seconds. _Think, think, think! You need a plan!_ It would have to be one hell of a good plan for it to work during the entire tour.

Silyah's brain was still trying to find a foolproof course of action when Elijah cleared his throat. The girl's eyes shot open, landing on the Fowl boy. "Mhmm?"

"May I suggest something?" he asked.

"Of course, go right ahead," Silyah prompted him.

"Perhaps we could go get dressed and discuss this somewhere else?"

Silyah's face suddenly flushed. That was right… She was locked up in a stall with two other people, with barely nothing on but a robe wrapped around herself. Not that Elijah had more clothes on, for that matter.

"Excellent proposition…" said the girl slowly, unlocking the stall's door as she turned to Haley. "We'll get dressed, then we can all meet up in my room. Go now if you want a head start; my door is not locked."

The slim raven-haired girl nodded, disappearing immediately as Silyah opened the door. Elijah gave Silyah a quick nod before going to his own stall.

They would have a problem to solve, but they could surely turn this one into an advantage.

After everyone was properly clothed and gathered in Silyah's room, it was decided that Haley was to remain concealed in the victor's chamber for as long as the train was in movement. To preserve the girl's magic supply as much as possible, as well as to allow her to get some fresh air, she suggested that she would subtly get off the train during each stop and follow the District 3 group from afar, hiding in plain sight with a different disguise every time. Seeing as it was riskier to have Haley be found in the train, both Silyah and the girl's twin had no objections in regards to that plan. Besides, how hard could it be to hide an invisible girl amongst a crew of oblivious people?

"How about the food?" questioned Haley. "I might be tiny, but I still need to have something in my stomach." After all, the Fowls never had issues with money and food.

"Well," Elijah ran a hand through his hair, smoothing it back only to let it fall back down on his forehead. "I could always get some more with each meal and give it to you. I am sure that nobody would question a teenage boy's appetite."

"I can eat with you in here. I was used to eating in the dining room wagon, but I don't think anyone will mind me locking myself up in my room," added Silyah.

"Then it's settled," nodded Elijah.

"Okay, so would we be ready to put this plan into action?" Haley tilted her head slightly. "I'm actually really hungry right now."

Silyah glanced at the clock on her nightstand. "Dinner should be ready by now… Let's get this operation started."

After being over the initial shock of Haley's presence on board, Silyah began to feel something she hadn't felt in a long time: better. A little voice at the back of her mind was telling her that this trip would not be so bad; that she wouldn't have to through this alone. She'd have Elijah to keep her in check, and his twin sister to perhaps have a friend to confide in. Unfortunately, the revival of her optimistic side only lasted so long, and her newfound pessimism quickly took back over when Effie was done going over the day's schedule with her.

"Elijah!" called Silyah, walking in the living room wagon, not quite yelling, but definitely being loud enough to alarm the boy. "We have a problem! Big, big, big problem!"

"And what would that be?" Hearing his name, the boy turned to her.

"Effie told me to read these cards for my speech, but I really can't read _this. _This is horrible!"

"We can make some slight adjustments, I'm sure. Let me see them," requested Elijah.

Silyah cleared her throat as she went to his side. "The beginning is okay, but here's an example: 'I am grateful for the sacrifice of your tribute, for they are the reason I'm alive.' That's awful! Certainly not words to say to people in grief."

"Remind me to never let Effie write my biography."

"What's the matter?" Beetee, who had been looking for his tribute, walked up to the two teenagers.

The girl turned to her mentor. "Have you read Effie's speech?"

A slight guilty look appeared in the man's eyes. "No," he admitted. As wonderful as he was with electronics, speeches intended for broad audiences were not strongest suit. He had a technical mind and he was good at explaining, but heartfelt speeches were completely beyond him.

"Could we modify a few things? Just the wording?" suggested Elijah.

The mentor looked at the time. "We'll have to be quick. We'll be in District 12 soon."

It was at this convenient moment that Effie appeared. "Oh, there you all are! The stylists are waiting for all of you! Off to the cart you go!"

Silyah gave a faint grunt as the woman pushed them towards the stylists' area eagerly. Walking beside her, Elijah still didn't understand why he had to go through this torture since he would not even be seen on camera, but he nevertheless followed the program. Along with Beetee, they used their time in the stylists' chairs as a brainstorming session to subtly make the victor's speech a bit softer.

Only a clock tick ahead of the plan, Elijah gave the speech a final read over just to make sure that there was nothing in there that Kelp would frown upon. In fact, as far as timing went, the whole group was not to linger on any detail for too long, for just as they were done getting ready, the train was starting to slow down, preparing for its arrival in the twelfth district of the great nation of Panem.

Getting up from his chair, Elijah walked over to the window. It wasn't every day one could get to see a district other than his or her own. Silyah quickly joined him as soon as Xarone finished adjusting her black winter cape on her shoulders.

Through the window, everything was slightly blurry, but soon enough a fence appeared into view, followed by a landscape of green and mountains. Further down the railroad, a city of gray and brown stood.

"This is…" Silyah squinted at the window. "Much different from what I expected."

"What did you expect exactly?" Elijah glanced towards her.

"Less nature, more mines."

"From what I know, mines are usually underground," the boy pointed out.

"The tunnels are, but not the facilities," she raised an eyebrow at him.

"Fair enough. They could be in another section of the town."

As Silyah nodded, a very faint shimmer appeared in her field of view. "Ready?" she asked quietly, knowing that Haley was now at her side.

She had let the girl rummage through her clothes to find something to wear for the ceremony, and had smuggled a simple blond wig and some makeup from the stylists' cart for her to disguise herself. For the time being, however, Haley was invisible, waiting to disembark the train and get to the Justice Building before letting go of her shield.

Elijah glanced down at the watch that served him as a communicator. "Ready," he replied, when he saw the tiny "thumbs up" icon Haley had sent him.

When the train came to a full stop, the whole group huddled at its opening doors. A small welcoming committee composed of the three victors of 12 and two Peacekeepers was waiting for them on the train station's main floor.

"Welcome to District 12," said Peeta Mellark as the group from 3 walked over to them. "Or welcome back, in your case," he smiled at Effie, who looked absolutely thrilled to have all her victors gathered in the same place.

Ecstatic, the Capitol woman led the introductions and promptly hugged everyone, including Haymitch, who smelled a tad strange.

Just as Katniss shook her head to look away from the boy who seemed out of place, Effie brought him forward.

"Now, before anyone asks, this is Elijah Fowl," she told the group. "He has been granted a special invitation for the tour by the President. He is here as Silyah's moral support, but he does not want to be seen on camera. Isn't it right?"

"That's right," confirmed the young man. "In case you're wondering, I am Artemis's half-brother," he added, still feeling as though his presence in District 12 was being questioned.

The two Peacekeepers looked at each other, and then towards the boy. "We'll take him with us while you are touring the district to get to the Justice Building," said one of them.

Elijah eyed Silyah for a moment.

"I'm slightly nervous, but I don't think I'll require your service in the next few minutes," she told him.

"Alright then." He took a split-second to subtly read a message on his communicator and nodded. "We won't be too far away, I presume." Silyah caught his reference instantly. Haley was going to go with him. "Let me know if you do end up needing me," added Elijah, turning to the Peacekeepers to follow them to their vehicle.

"We should get going too," said Katniss. "The sooner the ceremony ends, the sooner Haymitch will get to reunite with the bar during the banquet." She gave him a playful smile.

"Now you're talking, sweetheart," replied the man in question.

"She's right," Peeta took a step forward. "Basically, the Peacekeepers will lead the way and your team's vehicle will go after them. The rest of us will take the rear, but we won't be part of the main event."

Silyah nodded as Effie led her to a convertible car. For this ride, she would get to sit in the front passenger's seat while her mentor, escort and main stylist would fill the back row.

"The only thing left to do is to smile and wave," Effie encouraged her as the car took off. "Everyone is gathered to see you, so enjoy this moment!"

Silyah highly doubted that, but nevertheless obliged for the thirty minutes it took them to complete the tour of the city and reach the Justice Building.

Once the whole District 3 team was gathered in the City Square's main edifice, the ceremony began and Silyah was soon pushed on the stage to go face a silent crowd. She shook hands with the Mayor who recited a speech for her and was handed a bouquet of flowers before it was time for her to speak.

Through a window, Elijah watched her and the crowd in turns, wanting to keep an eye on her, as promised, and see how the crowd reacted to her speech while trying to spot his sister amongst the gathered people. From where he stood, he could periodically catch a glimpse Silyah's shaking hands. Although she was reading her cards in a confident tone, it seemed that facing a crowd would forever make her tremble.

On the stage, the victor looked up to the platform that had been built at the back of the City Square. On one side was Scpenser Ross's parents and what seemed to be his younger brother. On the other, a petite woman with pale brown hair stood alongside a tall blond man and three elderly people. Perhaps Quartz Dalhai's grandparents.

Seeing the look upon their tired faces, Silyah was glad to have made a few changes to her cards. It wouldn't make a big difference in the depth of their pain, but it would certainly help to soften the blow of their children's deaths.

"I didn't know your kids very well, but I am aware that for some time, Scpenser helped my… friend survive in the arena. I also know for sure that Quartz was a great positive spirit. The fact is that I owe my life to your tributes. I am tremendously grateful to be alive, but I know that I will always be in debt for their sacrifice. Therefore, thank you, District 12… Stay strong." She bowed down, a hand on her heart to show her respects to the calm crowd before her. The thought of giving the audience a three finger salute had briefly crossed her mind, but the President's words echoed in her ears before she could do anything deemed too rebellious.

Shortly after, the Mayor handed Silyah a plaque of some sort and the audience was given some time to cheer. Then, the ceremony was closed and the girl was escorted back inside the Justice Building.

"That didn't go so bad," said Elijah as the doors closed behind the brunette.

"Glad you think so," she gave him a shy smile. "I saw your sister, by the way," she added, this time speaking in the tongue Artemis had taught her.

Elijah didn't even have the time to reply; Effie had already entrapped Silyah in a hug.  
>"Well done! That was a fantastic way to start off the tour! And you will be bringing capes back in style!"<p>

Elijah took a step back, chuckling lightly, covering his mouth behind his hand.

"Thanks Effie," said Silyah, giving the woman a light pat on the back while narrowing her eyes at Elijah.

The escort let go of the girl.

"Only eleven more districts and the Capitol left. It should be a blast," smirked the Fowl boy.

"Oh, it's going to be absolutely wonderful!" Although she had not been on many tours, Effie was positive about the fact that she adored them.

Elijah gave Silyah a look behind the escort's back. He would have to work really hard to endure Effie's overly enthusiastic behavior.

"You'll get used to it," whispered the girl before being told to go meet her stylist to get ready for the evening banquet.

It took everyone a little less than an hour to change into their evening attire and meet up again in the Justice Building's reception hall for the District 12 Victory Banquet.

The whole celebration was not exactly grand. There was some light music and chatting people here and there, but it was nothing like a Capitol extravaganza.

Elijah looked around, relatively okay with how little attention seemed to be directed towards Silyah and him.

"Well, isn't this festive…"

"Looks like my kind of party," Silyah gave him a side-glance as she gathered the mesh skirt of her dress to sit down. "Short and quiet, with decent food."

On the other side of the table, the three victors from 12, who had been invited at the honor table, chuckled at Silyah's comment. They pretty much felt the same way about the parties.

While waiting for the first course of their meal, the group made small talk, but it was clear that everyone around the table was being careful about their words due to the presence of cameras and microphones in the room. Elijah did not participate much to the conversations, choosing to keep an eye on his sister instead. She had appeared shortly after his arrival, hiding in plain sight and doing a good job blending in with the locals.

Between the entrées and the main course, Silyah was introduced to two women with fair skin and hair; Mrs. Everdeen and her second daughter, Primrose, with whom the Natho girl got along quite well. In fact, what very few people knew was that the youngest Everdeen girl had made it her mission to help new victors feel better on the first day of their tour. She knew what it was like to support a Hunger Games survivor and she had figured she might as well use her knowledge for the greater good. It definitely made her feel better about the fact that she had been spared from going to the arena when she had still been eligible for the Reaping, which was not the case anymore.

When dessert time came, no one was surprised to see the Mellarks make their arrival, much to Silyah's joy, as she remembered quite fondly how tasty their pastries were. The whole family was there, bringing cookies, tarts and small cakes on each table of the reception hall. Each of the pastries was decorated with a purple flower Silyah knew all too well.

To the brunette's right, Elijah eyed the frosted flowers and looked back towards the victor. It seemed as though the world didn't want her to forget about Artemis. It occurred to him that he probably wasn't helping either, considering how alike she thought he and his ancestor were.

"Hope you like the personal touch," Peeta told Silyah.

"He's been practicing for weeks," laughed Katniss. "I'm pretty sure he could paint one with his eyes closed. What did you call them again?"

Silyah glanced down at her bracelet. Beside the skeleton key was dangling the charm Artemis had made for her. She had tied it there since her black dress' thick straps wrapped around her neck in a way that wouldn't look right with a necklace. "Aremèsias. It's a bit of a silly name, I know…"

"Not as silly as Coriolanus Snow," murmured Katniss, a playful smile on her lips.

"Fair point," admitted Silyah, taking a tiny cupcake between her fingers.

"Then again, who are we to talk? Names these days are very… Unique. I think that around this table, there's only Elijah who's got a more conservative name," brought up Peeta.

The teenager in question turned his attention away from a camera in the corner of the room at the mention of his name. "My family always had a particular interest for old-fashioned names, Mr. Mellark," he explained.

The last two words of the boy's sentence seemed to amuse Katniss. Peeta gave his fiancée an exasperated look.

"Don't encourage them, Katniss," he said, although his smile was already resurfacing. "Ah, am I really going to be called Mr. Mellark of the remainder of my life? It makes me sound like my dad."

Katniss laughed some more.

"One day you'll get it too, Mrs. Mellark," responded Peeta, leaning back into his chair.

Katniss fell quiet and regret immediately filled Peeta's eyes, which landed on the ring on the young woman's left hand. The moment of silence lingered on until the baker's son straightened himself up again. "I think it's time for a dance. Silyah?"

It took the girl a few seconds to register that request. "Oh, sorry… I'm not much of a dancer. I think I might be more lethal with heels on a dance floor than with a spear in the arena."

"It's that bad?" wondered Peeta.

"Last time it ended with Artemis almost getting punched in the nose and Caskar getting electrocuted," Silyah reminded him. Surely he had seen that during the tribute Gathering.

"Poor girl," Katniss shook her head, smiling. "I'll go with him." She got up, smoothing her sleek feathered dress. "If you change your mind, you can join us. In the meantime, just keep an eye on Haymitch." She rolled her eyes to then look towards the man who clearly had a long meeting with the bar. On that note, she and her fiancé headed to the dance floor.

Elijah turned to Silyah once the two other victors left. "How do you think you'll fare in the Capitol if you cannot even dance here?" There was a "Fowl smirk" on his face.

She sent him one right back. "I was hoping you could help me break my leg before getting there."

"It isn't moral support you need me for; it's dance lessons," stated the boy.

"Wait, a Fowl that doesn't have two left feet? Those _things _exist?" Silyah tried to hide her sudden anxiety with sarcasm.

"Say what you want to say, but I don't think you'll get away with remaining seated in every single district, Silyah. When should we schedule your first lesson?" he asked her, giving her a small payback for her little game of sass.

"Don't be ridiculous, as annoying as you are right now, I wouldn't want to kill you," she grimaced. "You know that can be unstable on my feet. Now imagine when I have to wear a new pair of high heels every night."

"Then we should start your lessons as soon as possible. I don't think you'd want to trip in the Capitol."

Tired of that talk, Silyah turned her head away from Elijah to look at the small crowd in the reception hall.

"I'll tell you what. Instead of dancing, we should go mingle with people our own age. Look at that blond girl over there. She looks like she could use some socializing and seems much nicer than you." Silyah got up, resolute on the idea of joining Haley by the refreshment table.

Elijah sighed as he followed her, accepting his defeat. For the time being, he was powerless against Silyah's will. Her behavior was practically exemplary as far keeping the secrets of the People went and she had proven to be a clever planner when Haley had shown up in the train. As a matter of fact, he wondered why Kelp was worrying so much about her.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Yes, the new chapter is here at last! We had originally planned to get it out for September 1st, but we were slightly delayed. On this note, happy late birthday to Artemis Fowl II!<strong>_


	7. Chapter Six, Of Dreams and Mothers

_**Chapter Six, Of Dreams and Mothers**_

Thus far, the Capitol's Victory Tour train had stopped in four of the twelve districts of Panem. Fortunately for Silyah, the event seemed to be going rather smoothly. There were very few people talking about Artemis's mysterious disappearance, no one had discovered Haley and even Elijah had managed to stay under the radar during the ceremonies. His presence was really only noticed by the guests of the banquets.

Every day was more or less a mere copy of the previous one, yet every night, new ghosts came to haunt Silyah. Being forced to remember the deaths of all the people she had been staying with under the constricted world of the arena was starting to take a lot of strength from the girl who barely had had the time to heal from her mental wounds. Although she had once been used to the nightmares, at this point Silyah had begun to be mortified by them once more.

As the sixth day of the tour dawned, her hoarse scream broke the silence in her room.

Haley jerked awake and gasped, trying to quickly wake her brain up to be able to process the situation unraveling before her. She rubbed her eyes in an attempt to acclimate them to the obscurity, then turned to her left to face Silyah.

"What's going on?" asked the Fowl girl, obviously shaken. "Silyah? Silyah, what's wrong?"

Haley's questions were of no use. Silyah was breathing to an odd rhythm, inhaling and exhaling in threes. Her chin was between her knees and her eyes were wide open, glistening in the feeble light.

Haley sat crossed-legged beside her, placing a light hand on the victor's back. Silyah immediately cringed away, engaging herself in a panicked struggle to dislodge her feet from under the bed sheets, to then quickly crawl to the corner of the room. Shriveled up on herself where the two walls met, she let out a raspy lament.

Haley wasn't sure whose heart was beating the fastest. She had no clue as to what was going on and it made her excessively worried. Silyah was now practically gasping for air with each long breath she took and she hadn't blinked in a long time; her eyes were just darting all over the room.

"Silyah?" Haley asked again, trying not to sound too alarmed. The brunette's stare locked on her as her nails began to dig into her knees. "What's wrong?"

Slowly but surely, Silyah's features softened up and she closed her eyes, setting her head back down to sob. This went on for several minutes, until she looked back up again to lean against the wall. She panted, as her shaking hand wiped her face.

Haley moved over to the edge of the bed, realizing that questioning the girl would not work. She would have to wait for her to open up.

Eventually, Silyah got up and went back on the bed to sit beside Haley. "Sorry. I'm sorry." She took three calming breaths, clenching her fists. "I'm sorry, Haley."

"Hey, there's nothing to be sorry about…" She wanted to put her arm around the girl, but decided against it, given what had just happened. "Bad dream?"

"They found out. They killed you," breathed Silyah, her voice trembling. "Because of me." There was still a sliver of panic in the girl's eyes.

"It was just a nightmare. I'm still very alive, believe me." Not caring about the outcome anymore, she began to rub Silyah's back gently. The poor girl was shaking as though she was in a mine wagon rather than in a high speed train. "Everything's fine. Do you want me to go get my brother? He has this thing, he can –"

"No!" Silyah shook her head and cleared her throat. "I mean, no need to wake him up…"

"He's probably already up, you know… Twin stuff… But that's not the point. We could help you."

"I'm used to the nightmares," protested Silyah. "I didn't really want anyone to know how I react to them." She let her shoulders sink. "But this one was really bad." Her voice cracked. "Worst one so far."

"I'm all ears if you want to share."

Silyah rubbed her stinging eyes. "So many corpses…" She breathed again, trying to find a way to make sense. She tried to keep her hands from shaking by interlocking her fingers together, massaging her palms with her thumbs. "They… Someone… Someone had found you here… Next thing I knew, we were in the Capitol and they had me hold a gun to your head for a public execution. I didn't want to shoot, so they put me on this…" Her voice was suddenly cut by a raspy breath. "They put me on this thing where I couldn't see what was below me. Your brother had gone completely crazy, yelling at me not to shoot you and begging them not to hurt me…" She sniffed, then coughed. "I didn't understand…" Silyah's throat was getting tighter and she could feel some tears beginning to burn her eyes once more. "I couldn't see what was going on, but your brother tried to stop it and then I saw him drop dead on the ground. I looked down and there were moving corpses underneath me. Geneva, Caskar, Kalheb… Silver… They ripped him apart and then they went back to me. The longer I waited to shoot you, the more aggressive they became. They started by scratching my feet, then one of them began picking at my toenails and tore them off… I couldn't… I couldn't stand it, so I pulled the trigger. I watched it all..." The memories were too vivid. She could not recall everything, but what she did remember was too detailed for the girl's own good.

Haley fought hard not to look traumatized. "It's all over now… It was just your worries tricking you." She gave Silyah a comforting, yet slightly awkward hug. "If it can make you feel better, I can debunk every element in that dream." She straightened her back and crossed her legs. "First off, I can assure you that even if someone saw a glimpse of me, my brother could easily make them forget me with his _mesmer_."

"And I'm fairly sure that the dead can't come back to life," nodded the brunette.

"Well…" Oh yes, Haley had heard of the tales from that fateful day during which an army of Berserkers rose from the underground. Not to mention what had happened to her great-great-grandfather…

Silyah looked at her, her eyes filled with terror and disbelief.

"It was a long time ago and no human could do it without the People's help. You don't have to worry about it. It will most likely never happen again. All you have to know is that Artemis the Second was involved."

"How's that supposed to help me rationalize things?" Silyah's wide and teary eyes scanned Haley's face.

"Sorry, I'm not used to socializing and comforting other people, aside from my twin… It's not too late to call him, by the way. If you don't want him to help using his magic, then I swear he wouldn't mind you taking him as a giant teddy bear for the rest of the night instead."

The corner of Silyah's mouth moved up by a few millimeters. "I'll pass on that offer. I'm sure that "teddy bear" is not part of his job as my watchdog."

"Not technically a part of his "job," but if we asked nicely, he could do it," shrugged Haley, grinning. "Alternatively, you can try falling asleep while picturing him wearing a teddy bear outfit in order not to think about your nightmares… Unless that causes you to have a whole different kind of nightmare."

"I guess I could try that," this time, Silyah couldn't help but smile. That mental image was actually quite amusing. "I'll go get some water. Do you want anything?"

"I wouldn't say no to a bottle of water," replied Haley, tucking herself back into bed.

Silyah got up and headed for the door. Before opening it, she turned to the black-haired girl.

"Thanks for listening, Haley."

"No problem. That's what I'm here for. It's nice to finally have a friend who's not my twin brother."

At this moment, something seemed to click for Silyah. She instantly seemed to acknowledge the fact that Haley was someone she could trust and that the Fowl girl trusted her as well. While this realization was slightly overwhelming, Silyah was, in a way, grateful that Haley had sneaked into the train.

* * *

><p><em>A light tune was floating around the Fowl Manor, filling its old wooden corridors through a system of wireless speakers. At this point in time, everything inside the mansion appeared to be a contradiction; a strange, yet harmonious combination of ancient designs and cutting-edge technology. In the middle of it all, in the comfort of his room, was Artemis Fowl II. With his eyes closed, he was delicately moving his hands to the music, as would an orchestra conductor. He was also inhaling deeply, taking in the warm smell of his home. The plush duvet cover wrapped around him was only adding to the coziness of his surroundings. It had been a while since the manor had been this peaceful. It was almost as if the residence had been cut off from the rest of Ireland by a time stop and that the world outside couldn't even peek in.<em>

_Oddly enough, the strange feeling of emptiness that had been looming over Artemis for quite some time now had vanished that morning. Perhaps his mind had let go of something, or maybe that the time had come… _

"_Excuse me, am I at the Fowl Manor?" _

_Artemis opened his eyes, his gaze landing on his frail hands. It traveled from his thin, paper-like skin and thick knuckles to the door of his room._

"_I'm sorry, do you happen to know where I could find Artemis Fowl? The Second?"_

_Artemis's heart skipped a beat. The girl at the door… He knew her, didn't he? Surely, it couldn't be her… _

"_Silyah?"_

_She took a few steps forward. _

"_Yes…" She toyed with the hem of her gray dress; the one she had worn during the Reaping. "I'm afraid I am a bit lost…" She looked at the elderly man in the bed and he looked back at her with one faded blue eye and a hazel one that still looked sharp and young._

"_You really kept me waiting."_

"_Artemis?"_

"_Yes. I almost thought you had forgotten about me."_

_The boy Silyah had known was now unrecognizable. Even his voice had changed to something low and slightly hoarse. His once raven hair was now completely white and sparse. Silyah walked up to his bedside. The nearly translucent skin of his face was marked with deep lines formed by the time that went by._

"_I arrived as soon as I could. It's only been a few weeks since I last saw you. The time stream was not exactly easy to navigate without a precise date," replied the fifteen year-old._

_Artemis gave a low sigh. "I did leave a date, Silyah."_

"_No way…" She lowered her head, wondering how she missed it and where it could have possibly been hidden. "I'm terribly late, aren't I?"_

"_Well, I would have preferred your arrival to have been some decades earlier, but at least I got to see you before…" Artemis stopped. Surely the younger girl could see that his health was not exactly the best anymore._

_She gave him one of her too familiar bittersweet smiles. "You look like someone who had good and long life. Quite a feat for a Hunger Games survivor, my friend."_

"_Yes. The Games haven't been something I've had to worry about for years. Although, it did leave certain reminders…" _

_Silyah took the liberty of sitting at the edge of the elder's bed as Artemis slowly pulled down the collar of his shirt, displaying a faded scar spawning across the entire width of his throat._

_The young woman brought her hands close to the scar, but couldn't bring herself to brush his delicate skin. "Can't believe that for me, that scar was still fresh not too long ago…"_

"_Odd thing, time," stated the white-haired man._

"_What have you done with all your time?" wondered Silyah. _

"_Oh, you know…" Artemis looked thoughtful. Surely he wasn't starting to forget things already. After all, he wasn't older than Holly had been when he first met her. "I founded the Fowl Industries at the first chance I got and beside that… Well, I waited for you."_

"_Did you ever… Meet someone? Start a family?" The girl was highly doubtful of those two things, but she asked anyway. _

"_No, I didn't… I never saw myself as a family man."_

"_Yeah, you and I are very much alike about that."_

"_So, what have you been doing since the Games?"_

"_Well, I took some time to heal, both physically and mentally… Then I started getting in touch with the People."_

"_Ah, I see. Is Holly still around? She came to check on me yesterday… Or the day before that…"_

"_Oh, I don't know." Silyah looked up to him. Was her face narrower that it had been just a few seconds ago? "I only dealt with demons."_

_Artemis furrowed his brows, unsure of whether his two different eyes were playing tricks on him or not. _

"_I see…" the elderly man paused. "Have _you_… met someone?"_

_Silyah's shoulder moved as she breathed, giving off something akin to a dry chuckle. _

"_Plenty of people here and there. No one worth keeping for too long. I learned that I get easily bored with people." This time, it couldn't have been a trick of the light; her cheekbones definitely looked sharper, and perhaps her lips were now a little less full._

"_I see… Did you… ever… wish you could have stayed with me?"_

"_Why would I have wished such a thing? You helped me win the Games. You served your purpose. You might have been special back in your young days and in your rightful time period, but in Panem, you were basically nothing. Just the ghost of a pawn."_

_Artemis could have sworn his heart temporarily froze in his chest. _

"_You… Surely, you cannot mean that."_

"_Did you really expect me to waste my life away by constantly trying to look through the past?" Perhaps it was due to her expression, but some lines seemed to be digging their way into Silyah's skin. Her eyes, which used to seem so youthful and filled with hope had turned cold and dull._

"_Well, I…" What had he been expecting? Everything had happened so long ago that he found it hard to remember that specific detail._

"_If you really had wanted me to find you, you could have made your message clearer, _genius_. The fact is: I moved on, Fowl." She tucked a slightly graying strand of hair behind her ear._

_Artemis inhaled deeply. He was truly confused, which was not a frequent occurrence. The elderly man slowly inched forward, eyeing the girl – no, the woman, with narrow eyes. She didn't have those graying streaks of hair earlier. He'd have remembered that. Was his memory failing him?_

"_Why are you looking at me?" asked Silyah, her voice clearly coarser than before. Silver and white curls were going down her shoulders and her skin was not unlike Artemis's._

"_We were talking… Isn't it polite to look at someone when you're talking to them?" Artemis frowned. "You seem… older, somehow…"_

"_You should look at yourself. And I am much older than what I let show. The Capitol sees to that, thank you very much."_

"_No, I mean you appear to be aging." Was she caught between her life and his time stream?_

"_What do you mean, I'm human, it happens," she sighed, getting annoyed._

"_Yes, that is true… But we don't age this rapidly. Silyah, you're almost as old as I am!"_

"_How do you know my name?"_

"_After all we've been through, I better know your name."_

"_All we've been through?" She looked around, concerned and as confused as he was. "Sir, I don't know you. What am I doing here? Where am I?"_

_Coming from someone else, he might have thought that the situation was a badly constructed joke, but Silyah had always been more mature than that. Had she?_

"_You… You came to visit me." Had she? This didn't look like the girl he had known. Not anymore._

_The old woman squinted and shook her head._

_Artemis tried to understand, but his brain would not cooperate, which was certainly a first. Frustrated, the man closed his eyes tightly and attempted to focus. What was he supposed to focus on again? The music filling the manor was getting too loud, too distracting. It was stressing him out! Artemis covered his ears only to replace the music by the rapid beat of his heart._

This madness must stop! _he told himself. _This has to stop now!

_The old man opened his eyes, breathing hard. The music had toned down to its regular pleasing volume. Seeing that he was alone in his room, Artemis wondered if Silyah had ever been there at all, or if it was just the type of thing a dying man was likely to see._

* * *

><p>Artemis jolted awake, finding it oddly disconcerting to wake up in the same room as the one in his dream. He rubbed his eyes and checked the time. It was a little past 3:00AM. <em>How wonderful. <em>

Now that he was a little more awake, the dream came back to him. Was he really nervous about Silyah showing up in a few hours? Yes, dear goodness he actually was. Who would have thought?

Sliding his feet over the edge of the bed and into his slippers, Artemis got to his feet. There was no way he'd be able to go back to sleep right away. He thus decided to go to the kitchen downstairs to grab a drink and try to think things over.

"Arty?" asked a half-awake voice as the teen walked into the kitchen. "What are you doing up this late?"

"Mother?" He was as surprised to see her as she was to see him. "Well, a strange dream woke me. Why are _you _up at this hour, though? Shouldn't you be resting?"

"Oh, I had a bit of a sore throat, nothing to worry about." She furrowed her brows. "You aren't usually disturbed by dreams… What's the matter sweetie?"

"I… I'm just a tad nervous about something."

"Something must be really wrong. _You_, nervous?" She took half a step towards him, wanting to take him in her arms.

"There is this person I'm expecting tomorrow, a friend," said Artemis, stepping closer to his mother, allowing her to hug him.

"Well, that's a bit unusual for you, but I don't see why it troubles you so much. Is it someone from school?"

"No, we met at the science conference I attended a little while ago. She… Well, it is quite difficult for her to get here, but if everything goes according to plan, she should be here in the morning."

A fond smile appeared on Angeline's face. "She?" This was definitely a first.

"Yes, Mother, she," nodded Artemis, ignoring the subtle heat in his cheeks. "Oh, don't smile like that, please. It's not like that…"

"If you say so," her smile was certainly not fading. She cleared her sore throat. "Yet, you are so nervous about her not making it that it troubles your sleep?"

"I… _might_ like her a little…" muttered the teen, finally admitting it. "But I don't think it would work out very well."

"Look at you already trying to define the future. Take it from me, take the chance to enjoy every moment life can give you instead of always worrying about 'what ifs.' You deserve this. You seem to always be working on some type of plan or project…" she trailed off, shaking her head.

"I will. It would simply be unlikely for whatever there might be between us to last for very long. I am merely being logical, Mother," stated Artemis, brushing a rebellious strand of hair away from his face. "And if you must know, I actually enjoy working on plans and projects. It _is_ what I am good at."

"I know, darling…" The woman ran her hand through his hair. "Whatever happens, I'll be thrilled to meet her tomorrow…" She glanced at the time. "Or, later today, actually."

"I'm sure you'll like her. Just don't get too excited; she might not be able to visit us again."

"I take it that she lives abroad?"

"Yes, she does. Quite far away," nodded Artemis.

"American?"

"No… Canadian," lied the boy. She definitely had a Canadian vibe.

"Still not too far. We do own multiple planes," smiled Mrs. Fowl. "Anyway, do you think she'll be joining us for the Charity Gala in the evening?"

Artemis had definitely forgot that detail. Not that he was to blame, he had been quite busy fighting for his life, after all.

"Perhaps. I'll mention it to her and we'll see what she says."

The boy's mother turned to the refrigerator and poured Artemis a glass of water.

"After that, off to sleep you go. You have to be in shape for tomorrow. I take it you'll have a big day ahead of you."

Artemis was strangely startled by the words "big day." They nearly made him shiver.

"Yes, big, big day…"

"If you don't mind, please turn off the light once you're done. I'll go get a cough drop and head back to bed too." She allowed herself to press a kiss on his forehead before going back upstairs.

"I will. Goodnight… _mum_…"

The woman pretended not to hear him, but with the overwhelming warmth she suddenly felt, she couldn't help but to whisper a "goodnight, Arty," back to him.

* * *

><p><em><strong>A few minutes away from District 8, Panem<strong>_

"Are my tributes ready? We'll be arriving in 8 in less than five minutes!" Effie delicately knocked on the mahogany door before shaking her head. _Tributes?_ "I mean, the _victor _and her _guest_."

"They're almost ready," replied Ilranor, who was combing the last stray lock on Elijah's head.

The boy's patience was about to run thin, but he avoided to voice his complaints. He wasn't going to win any argument at the moment, especially since he was wearing eyeliner. For now, it was thus better to endure everything and keep a low profile.

"There you go, I'm done," finally said the stylist.

"Now get of here and shine!" enthusiastically exclaimed Xarone, gently pushing both Silyah and Elijah out of the stylists' headquarters to join Effie.

"You two look perfect!" said the escort as she greeted the two teens. "Ready for District 8?"

Silyah nodded, barely murmuring a short "Yeah…"

"You'll see, District 8's people are wonderfully creative!" Effie sent her a beaming smile as Beetee arrived.

While Effie was going on about their destination, Elijah had taken notice of something. He had eyed the brunette victor up and down a few time, seemingly comparing something. "Is it just me, or do our outfits bear a striking resemblance?" he asked Silyah.

She looked down at her black outfit; a winter jacket with sharp shoulders and a dramatic asymmetrical collar. The back and sides of the coat brushed the floor like a skirt's train, but the front had been kept relatively short. The jacket was closed off-center, much like a double-breast coat, yet only the side that attached the two front panels was adorned with five textured black buttons. Silyah then glanced at Elijah, whose own jacket was roughly constructed like hers. He didn't have the collar, nor the slightly pointed shoulders and the train, but the style of the closure, the buttons and the fabrics were the same.

"At least yours doesn't extend into a skirt," shrugged Silyah.

"Thank goodness," muttered Elijah. "Luckily, nobody is going to see me right away."

"At least the whole team somewhat matches…" mentioned Silyah, not exactly keen about being associated with Elijah in the same way she had been with Artemis.

Something in her voice must have given that away, because the shadow of a frown had, for a few seconds, decorated Elijah's pale features. That was until Effie pushed the group towards the train's doors.

"Now, now! Put a smile on those faces!" she said.

The team obliged right as the train began to progressively slow down, arriving at the District 8 station.

"Oh, I thought of something for you," suddenly said Silyah, turning towards Elijah. She handed him a pair of sunglasses she had found in Ilranor's supplies. "Not much, but I thought it could help you stay _undercover_."

The dark-haired teen took the sunglasses, giving them a look.

"It could help, I guess," he nodded and put them on. They were not overly detailed and they seemed to work with his outfit.

"So, as I told you," babbled Effie, "the tour will start with a visit of District 8 and then we'll follow up with your speech, per usual. After the speech, however, we were given a special permission, so a surprise will be waiting for you."

"Surprise?" wondered Silyah, her gaze shifting from Elijah to Effie, whose smile couldn't possibly get any brighter or bigger.

The train completely stopped and without satisfying Silyah's curiosity, Effie took a deep breath. "District 8, here we are!"

Silyah turned back to Elijah. "Don't forget to stay within your leash's reach, _watchdog_," she told him, a teasing smirk on her face.

Elijah gave her the mother of all fake smiles. "How could I forget?"

The brunette gave him a side-glance as the doors of the train slid open. She plastered on a fake smile as well, surprised to see that this time, there was a good amount of photographers on the platform's floor. The tour was beginning to become a little more festive.

Elijah had tried to mentally prepare himself for the crowds ever since this whole "chaos" had started, but the amount of people on the District 8 platform still made him feel slightly dizzy.

"Just don't look at the flashes," mumbled Silyah, avoiding to turn towards her "watchdog," but nevertheless aiming her message towards him.

"Thank you for the advice, _Miss Obvious_," muttered Elijah faintly, but just loud enough for the girl to hear.

Silyah furrowed her brows, then raised her right one. "_Miss Obvious?_" Her reply earned her a look from Effie.

The raven-haired boy sighed. "Sorry, I don't like crowds…"

The group walked up to a car under the flashes that most likely belonged to the Capitol's official photographers. In fact, there were very few people who lived in 8 present at the train station aside from those who actually worked there.

"Since the station is a bit far from the main activities of the district, we'll be brought to the convertible tour vehicle that's waiting for us further up in town," explained Effie, pushing her group towards a long black car.

Silyah took a sideways step, letting Elijah climb on board before her. "Thought you might want to disappear as fast as possible… How's Haley?" she added the last part in Gnommish.

Elijah gave her a short thankful nod, happy to be out of view from the curious camera lenses. "She blended in with the photographers…" he replied in the same language.

Silyah slid in the seat next to him, followed by Effie and Beetee, who sat in front of them. The rest of the seats were then taken by the stylists and their teams.

"Only eight more of these if we count the Capitol," commented Beetee.

Elijah held back a sigh, he would just have to ignore all the people and focus on something else.

Silyah removed her scarlet gloves, setting them on her lap.

"So… Hopefully the rumors have not started yet."

"Rumors, Silyah?" wondered Effie.

Elijah had taken the dark glasses off, rolling his blue eyes.

"You surely know how people are Effie. They like to invent their own stories when they don't have the whole truth."

"Since he's not really supposed to be with us, he didn't want his face to be on every screen in Panem, but he was still seen at the banquets," added Silyah.

"Not that Panem would mind to see his face," said Effie.

The boy looked away after her comment. It wasn't the first time Effie hinted at her personal opinion about his looks. For some reason, it made him slightly embarrassed.

Beside him, Silyah leaned back, resting her head on the cold window behind her, barely troubled about the fact that it might ruin her hairdo. She closed her eyes for a short instant, then blinked a few times.

Elijah's gaze was still on her. His eyes seemed to go in her direction rather often.

"You better look a little more alive before you hold your speech. I am not sure that the people in 8 will react positively to the undead," commented the boy, realizing that he should probably have phrased his sentence a little more kindly a few seconds after the words escaped him.

Silyah stared at him, clearly not amused. "It might look bad, but trust me, death looks even worst. I've seen it from up close, if I may remind you." Needless to say, she also wished she could have taken back her sentence.

From his seat, Beetee coughed lightly.

Elijah turned to the man.

"Sorry, it seems that stress and sleep deprivation don't mix well for Miss Natho."

"Enough!" spat Silyah, slapping the boy's chest with the back of her hand.

"Ow… One would have thought you'd have left all your violent tendencies in the arena, Miss Natho."

"Stop it! I thought you were both more civilized than this," suddenly said Effie.

Silyah took a deep breath, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Sorry, Effie."

Elijah bit his lip, turning his head away from Silyah.

"I'm sorry, Effie," he muttered faintly.

"So… What's the first stop in the District tour?" asked Silyah, her tone much softer now than a few seconds ago.

"The fabric mills," replied the escort. "From there we'll start to weave our way to the city square."

Silyah raised an eyebrow, but nevertheless nodded. This wouldn't be that different from all the other districts she had visited. She'd do her stuff, Elijah would keep an annoying eye on her and Haley would stay safe, blissfully attacking the buffets.

All in all, this was pretty much exactly how everything got played out until a surprise came to Silyah.

After the victor's speech, the girl got back inside the Justice Building, as usual. At first, she barely noticed the two people waiting for her since she was still in a vague haze from having been in the spotlight, but eventually, she caught sight of the tall man with the broad built and pale grey hair. At his side was an auburn-haired woman.

"Grandmamie? Grandpapi?" It had been such a while since she had last seen them in person! She quickly walked up to them, greeting them both with a hug.

It was quite unusual for a family to reside in two different districts due to the strict regulations made to prevent communication between the divided sectors of Panem, but occasionally, it happened between neighboring districts. Given that Rochus Vale and Meriel Turscot, Silyah's grandparents, lived near the District 3 borders, their daughter Lysanda was granted the right to go work as a managing director in one of the district's factories due to her efficiency and the job demand. Not long after, the Government of Panem also transferred their tech-savvy son Pietri to District 3, since he was showing certain aptitudes with technology and that his sister was already there and well established. Indeed, before her brother's transfer, Lysanda had met Jeffreson Natho in her new district. After their wedding, the Vale woman was 'given the right' to permanently stay in 3, where she would soon raise her daughter Silyah, and later on, a son named Davrien.

That being said, Silyah's grandparents, who were now retired, stayed in District 8 for the sake of simplicity. They were only allowed one monitored call per month with their kids and grandkids, as well as a single supervised visit at the borders of District 8 and 3 every year.

"Your grandparents will get to sit with you at the banquet this evening," smiled Effie, joining the group with Elijah, Beetee and rest of the team. "They'll also be taken care of by the stylists, courtesy of the Capitol."

"That's great." Silyah was actually genuinely happy about that. Even though she didn't see them or hear about them on regular basis, she was really getting along with her grandparents. That was mostly because they were always on her side, unlike her parents.

"We'll be able to do a bit of catching up," said Meriel, gently rubbing Silyah's back. The older woman's gaze went over the whole group, lingering on Elijah just a little longer than on the rest of them.

"Guess I should introduce everyone." Silyah scanned her entourage. "This is Xarone and his prep team," she began, letting Nephelie, Ica Rose and Concetto name themselves. "After that, there's Ilranor and…" she paused, frankly unsure about the woman's helpers' names.

"Izolt, Throika and Marshia," the stylist permanently dressed in gold helped her out.

"Thanks… Then we have Beetee Latier, whom you might have seen before, Effie Trinket, whom you've definitely seen before and… Elijah Fowl… Guys, these are my mother's parents, Meriel and Rochus."

Meriel looked back at this new Fowl guy, then her eyes shifted back to Silyah.

"I'm Artemis's half-brother, ma'am," said Elijah, having noticed the wondering look the woman had given him. At this point, telling this fabricated story had gotten so natural that the words just rolled off his tongue.

"He never knew Artemis, so we mutually agreed to help each other deal with his death," added Silyah, once again flawlessly lying as her grandfather shook a robust hand with Elijah. The girl felt slightly guilty about telling lies to her own family, but she quickly shook that feeling off when she noticed that her face was a bit warm.

"Now that everyone is a bit familiar, may we move on to the preparation for the banquet?" In case it wasn't clear, that definitely was Effie's way of telling everyone to get their affairs in order and follow her schedule.

For once, Elijah agreed with Effie. It appeared that Silyah's grandparents weren't going to ask him too many follow-up questions. He like them already.

Hurrying slightly, he caught up with Silyah, who was now following Xarone. "You know, I really hadn't expected to be introduced to your family this early on."

"Ah, shut up," replied Silyah, her fist quick to land on Elijah's shoulder. "You should be careful about what you say during the banquet. Nothing sparks rumors like the family members of a girl after the said girl introduced them to a guy her age."

That last statement could not be denied. In fact, one could wonder if it would ever change given that the people in Artemis's days seemed to behave like that too. Little did Silyah know that many, many years ago, Angeline Fowl had spent a good half of the night dreaming about what would happen the following day; the day when Artemis would introduce her to his "girlfriend."


End file.
